










EDUCATION CONEERENCE REPORT 

n 



Intermountain School 
Brigham City, Utah 
November 5 - 10, 1958 


DEPARTMENT OE THE INTERIOR 
BUREAU OE INDIAN AEEAIRS 
BRANCH OE EDUCATION 











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<7 X 


















I. 



Hildegard Thompson 


III. Promoting Growth Among Children at Progressively 
Higher Levels 

William S. Gray 


11 


IV. The Nature of Reading and Basic Attitudes and Skills 
Involved 

William S. Gray 


29 


V. Diagrams - Illustrating "The Nature of Reading and 

Basic Attitudes and Skills Involved" 

William S. Gray 


42 


VI. The Role of the Area Director of Schools in the 
Reading Program 

Martin N. B. Holm 


50 


VII. Improving the Reading Program in Bureau Schools: 

Summary - One-day Meeting of Educational Specialists 53 


VIII. Background of Adult Education Program 

L. Madison Coombs 


54 


IX. Adult Education at the Seminole Agency 

William D. Boehmer 


58 


X. Fort Hall Adult Education Story 

Edgar L. Wight 


64 



XI. Materials for Adult Education 71 

Ann Nolan Clark 

XII. Promoting Growth Among Adults to the Level of 

Functional Literacy 77 

William S. Gray 

XIII. Guidelines for Adult Education: Summary - 

Discussion by Area Directors of Schools 90 

XIV. A Critical Look at the Educational Programs in Bureau 

High Schools: Summary - One-day Meeting of Area 
Directors of Schools 94 

XV. Report of the Twenty-Third Educational Conference of 

the Educational Records Bureau and the American 

Council on Education 102 


Almira D. Franchville 
R. Ethelyn Miller 

























































































































































































I 


FOREWORD 


Assistant Area Directors, Area Directors of Schools, Area 
Educational Specialists, Adult Educators, and the Central Office 
staff met to study the three problems listed below: 

Problem One : Evidence indicates that the reading achieve¬ 
ment of Indian pupils equals or excels the national norm up to 
approximately grade four, after which they begin to fall behind 
the national norms. Reading retardation becomes increasingly 
more serious as Indian children move from grade five through 
the upper grades and high school. 

What can be done to promote reading growth at 
progressively higher levels? 

Problem Two : Teachers at all levels in Bureau schools 
are faced with developing reading skills of children and 
adults who are reading in a second language. 

What should teachers at all levels know about the 
reading process? 

Problem Three : Adult educators are faced with the 
problems of motivating educationally handicapped Indian adults 
to undertake and continue instruction and study to the point 
that they can function in today's society. 

How can the educator sustain the interest of adults with 
limited goals to the point of functional competency in 
reading? 

How can undereducated, but uninterested adults be 
motivated to an awareness of their educational needs? 

The report includes the addresses delivered before the 
assembly and summaries of discussions. It should prove useful to 
the participants as they study the same problems at the Area level. 

Sincere appreciation is expressed to Dr. William S. Gray, 
Department of Education, University of Chicago, who served as a 
Consultant, for his very valuable contributions to the conference. 


Hildegard Thompson 
Chief, Branch of Education 










II 


STARTING AND DESTINATION POINTS IN INDIAN EDUCATION 
Hildegard Thompson 


Our function as employees of the Bureau of Indian Affairs 
is to make Indians aware that they can live with others whose ways 
are different ------ and then to teach them how to live with 

others who differ from them without sacrificing their own Indian 
individuality. This is the central concern in all of our programs. 

How to make Indians aware that they can live with others 
who have different ways and attitudes, and then to give them the 
knowledge and skills that they need to live among others and still 
be themselves is no easy job, is it? We certainly don't do it by 
trying to remake Indians into images of something we call non- 
Indian. That was tried at one time. It isn't the way to help 
Indians. We don't try to remake Indian culture into the pattern 
of something we call a dominant culture, because there is no such 
pattern. And we don't try to force Indians into accepting some¬ 
thing that they don't understand or that they do not want. All of 
those methods would be external and we know from experience, and 
if we don't all we have to do is look back in history and we can 
soon find out that something which is imposed will not teach 
Indians to live happily and successfully among those who are 
different, and still remain their own selves individually, 

We have to help Indians see, or desire, new ways. We 
have to touch something within, rather than use the external 
method - touch some inner spring within that will give them the 
desire, or make them want to live with others. After that inner 
something has been touched and they do have the desire or want to 
live with others, we must keep that desire alive; and then follow 
by teaching them the knowledge and the skills needed. That's why 
we have asked you, Dr. Gray, to come in to help us - to help us 
with certain aspects of this problem so that we may sharpen our own 
skills in helping Indians build their bridges towards other people. 
We can't build the bridges for them. They have to do the building 
themselves. We can give them the steel and the timber and the know¬ 
how, or some of the know-how, but the building must be their own. 

Helping them to build their bridges towards others is one 
side of the job, but there is another important side where help is 
needed also. There is another shore and that is helping non-Indians 
understand how to give Indians, after they have built their bridges, 
the helping hand that they need to be accepted. Now if Indians work 
hard at building their bridges toward others, and then they find 


2 




















that there are all kinds of road blocks in their way, such as 
cultural discrimination, political discrimination, economic 
discrimination, and so on, and this has sometimes happened, they 
get discouraged and retreat back across the bridge. So there are 
two facets to our work: one is to help the Indians by giving them 
the knowledge and the skills and touching that inner spring of 
desire, and then at the same time working on the other side of the 
stream to help those toward whom Indians are moving to accept them 
when they get there. And I know if these people attending the 
conference could stop and tell you, Dr. Gray, some of their 
experiences, for example, in preparing the way for youngsters to 
get into the public schools, they could give you a great deal of 
information about how they work with others to prepare the way for 
those who are moving toward other groups. Now in summary that 
gives you the purpose of our work. 

I think you, perhaps, would like to know a little about 
the progress that we have made and I can't really give any outline 
of progress without first giving some starting point and indicating 
some destination point. I think the policies of education over the 
years can be divided into sides of a book, and both sides are 
opposing. In other words, the concept behind the programs of 
earlier years on one side of the book was one thing; the concept 
underlying the program now is another. And one is just the 
opposite of the other. 

In the very beginning every action that was taken by the 
Federal Government was action that was taken to exclude Indians. 
When you get into history, you understand why that was. There was 
a pressure for land; Indians were in the way; Indians were 
constantly pushed westward; and there was law after law that was 
passed that facilitated this movement of exclusion. The removal 
legislation which was legislation that provided for moving the 
eastern groups to lands west of the Mississippi is an example. 

That was one of the first major pieces of legislation that 
implemented this concept of exclusion -- getting Indians away from 
non-Indians. Then hardly had Indians been settled west of the 
Mississippi until again they were overtaken by other forces -- the 
westward movement, the building of the railroads, the discovery of 
gold. They were in the way and they were swept aside, with the 
Indians fighting every inch of the way but finally losing; then 
they were put on reservations. Treaty after treaty, after treaty, 
was made with group after group, saying in effect, as long as the 
grass shall grow and the streams shall flow, this will be your land 
undisturbed and you will live here. Again, all of those treaties 
were legislation that implemented this concept of exclusion of 
Indians. In fact, not all the groups had even been given an area 


3 











to be called their own, or a reservation, when another force began 
to come into play. It was a newer idea. Now, of course, there were 
people who will say that the motives were ulterior but, regardless 
of the merits or the demerits of it, an idea began to grow that 
Indians should be like the rest of the people - that they should be 
farmers. And so the idea grew and grew until it was translated 
into the Dawes Act which said that every Indian would have a 
certain piece of land, 160 acres it was. Every Indian would be 
entitled to that 160 acres, and he should be given tools and 
taught to farm. 

As I say, there are those who say that the motive was 
not really to bring Indians into the group but was a desire again 
for land because others could look and see that some of this land 
was not used by the Indians in the same way that they would have 
used it and so the land was allotted on certain reservations and 
soon much of it went out of Indian ownership. 

That policy, in terms of allotting land, was stopped 
before all of the reservations were allotted but it was the 
beginning of the idea of inclusion as versus exclusion. And so, 
with the Dawes Act, which was in the last quarter of the last 
century, we had the idea growing to bring Indians into the groups 
rather than pushing them off to themselves. 

When we study all of the facets of history and see what 
happened on both sides, we can understand that we still deal with 
a great deal of emotion that grew out of the past. I suspect some 
of the bitterness still dies pretty slowly in some of the hearts - 
emotions that grew out of some of the things that happened in that 
early history still lie smoldering. But we can only look back to 
learn how to operate better in the present, rather than try to 
relive history. So from about 1870 then, you can follow the 
legislation through - with each piece of legislation intended to 
bring Indians into the dominant group. Beginning with the Dawes 
Act I'll just pick out a few of the major pieces of legislation 
that moved this idea of inclusion forward. The next major piece of 
legislation was the Citizenship Act of 1924. Many Indians were 
citizens before that time. Because of their allotment - when they 
got fee patent to their land - they gained citizenship. But there 
were still great numbers of them who were not citizens. The 
Citizenship Act gave all Indians within the continental United 
States the right to citizenship. The Citizenship Act put the 
States on notice that they should get prepared to offer services or 
provide services, including educational services to Indians on the 
same basis as to other citizens. 


4 



Another major piece of legislation which followed was what 
we call the Johnson-O'Malley Act. This Act was to help States 
financially to bring Indians into the schools and provide other 
services for them so that more and more of them could move into the 
same pattern for schooling as others. In terms of education (I'm 
just picking out the legislation now that's primarily related to 
education) since the Johnson-O'Malley Act we have Public Law 815 
and Indians have been included in that along with other citizens 
and considered for Federal impact aid because they live on non- 
taxable Indian land. Public Law 874 is a piece of legislation that 
was amended this last year that brings Indians a little closer 
because it includes them along with non-Indians for operation funds. 
Then Congressional Resolution 108 (the Citizenship Act put States 
on notice) put Indians on notice that they should get prepared to 
live with other groups. Now, that hastily sketches some of the 
major legislation. In the beginning, all of it was to exclude 
Indians. Since the last quarter of the last century, the idea has 
grown to include Indians into the regular groups in the communities, 
in the country. 

Now what evidence do we have that we've made any progress 
in carrying out this idea of inclusion? I think that if we had time 
to recall, as a group, the evidence that we know about, we could 
recall a great deal. Thousands of Indians have moved into groups 
other than their own and no longer have any special tie to the 
Federal Government. The Federal Government has no trustee responsi¬ 
bility for their property; they move and live with others the same 
as any citizens in the country. We can find Indians in all walks of 
life: in the professions, in the technical fields, in business, in 
the arts. They are no longer thought of as Indians. Dr. Gray was 
asking this morning how many Indians are in our service. Well, 
throughout the whole Bureau, not just the Branch of Education, but 
throughout the whole Bureau, I think the personnel people tell us 
about fifty percent of the employees are Indians. In education, 
that percentage is much higher because in most of our sub¬ 
professional jobs, practically all of the employees are Indian; and 
in our professional jobs in education, a high percentage are Indian. 
At the administrative conference four years ago, I took a quick 
glance down the roster, and I think about three-fourths of the 
people in positions of supervision - department heads, principals 
and superintendents - were of Indian extraction. So a great number 
of them have moved into the professional fields, and especially in 
the educational field. 

Indians have the franchise. They are using it more and 
more. At each election their voice becomes more powerful. I think 


5 




















































































that is a very important piece of evidence to show that Indians are 
learning to live among others whose ways are different and still 
remain Indians. 

The States have assumed major responsibility for education 
of Indians. About 51 percent of all the Indian children enrolled in 
school are enrolled in the public schools. I think that is an 
indication of the progress in this movement toward inclusion. And I 
am sure, if we took time, we could enumerate many other pieces of 
evidence to show that the movement is going forward. 

Now what is the destination point? Well, of course, I've 
already indicated what the destination point is: when all Indians 
have learned to live among others who have ways and attitudes 
different than their own and still remain Indian, or still retain 
their individuality, then the destination point will have been 
reached. How much farther do we have to go toward that point and 
how long will it take us to get there? I don't know how long it 
will take us to get there. I can outline some of the things that 
we have to do in order to get there. I think, just offhand, I would 
say that there are about three hundred thousand - between two 
hundred fifty and three hundred thousand Indians - who still look to 
the Federal Government as trustee of their property. So that is one 
milestone that has to be overcome, or has to be met before we reach 
that ultimate destination point. Of that number, approximately one- 
half of them are either illiterate or functionally illiterate. We 
have estimated on pretty good evidence that the median educational 
level of the Indian groups who still look to the Federal Government 
as trustee of their property is about fifth grade. I suspect fifth 
grade is barely functionally literate. So, in rough numbers then, 
we could say about half of them are either functionally or totally 
illiterate. 

There is another large segment of them who are under- 
educated in terms of the demands that are made of them today. So 
advancing the educational level of the Indian people to the point 
where they can move into and live among people whose ways and 
attitudes are different from theirs is an important milestone that 
we have to meet or overcome. And that's one reason for this 
conference, namely, to pool our thinking and to get the expert help 
of Dr. Gray on how we can better meet some of these problems with 
adults and with children in advancing the literacy and the educational 
level of Indians. I might interject here that the adult education 
group is responsible, and especially Mrs. Clark, in stimulating our 
activity in getting Dr. Gray's help because they felt the need of it 
in adult education. When we found that he would be willing to come, 
we felt that since we have over forty thousand children in school 


6 


























































































































































































































age groups still in our schools, and that is only 30 percent of the 
Indian children in school, and these people here have overall 
leadership responsibility for the instructional program of those 
children, that it would be too bad to leave that group out entirely; 
therefore, we brought in people who are responsible for leadership 
in programs that touch the school age as well as the adult Indians. 

The school-age group, about 87 percent are elementary 
children, and, of course, in this day and age, an elementary 
education is not enough. Our Indian parents, sometimes, do not, 
because of lack of education themselves, know how to motivate their 
youngsters educationally to the point where they will stay in school 
long enough. We are saying that even a high school education is not 
enough. So we've got to find ways to touch off this inner spring 
with parents and children to keep them in school longer. That's why 
we've brought in the group that's concerned with the school-age 
children as well as those in the adult education program. About 10 
percent (this is another milestone that we have to travel) of the 
children of school age still lack school facilities in spite of the 
great progress made in the last four or five years. In that time 
we've kept up with the increase in school-age children which is 
tremendous, and we have cut the backlog in half. But we still have 
10 percent of the children who lack facilities, so one of our major 
activities is to try to get the funds to provide the school facilities 
for this 10 percent because we can't advance the educational level of 
Indian people and still leave 10 percent of the Indian children out 
of school to grow up illiterate. We have a great job to do in 
educating parents to the point that, as I stated before, they are 
willing to keep their children in school long enough to get the kind 
of education they are going to have to have in this day and age. We 
feel that the adult education program will contribute a great deal 
in motivating parents to encourage their children to stay in school. 

Another problem, too, that we still have to work with, and 
we are working with it the best we know how, is to remove - I don't 
like to call it discrimination because it isn't exactly that - some 
of the adverse attitudes of non-Indians toward Indians. By and large 
it is not an attitude of discrimination because of race. It's an 
attitude of discrimination because in many places it is felt that 
Indians are not carrying their financial load since their real 
property is not taxed. In other words, it's a discrimination because 
of the tax-free lands and a feeling that Indians, especially for 
costly services like education, welfare, etc., are not contributing 
their share. The problem is oversimplified by saying that Indians 
don't pay taxes. They do pay taxes. They pay all taxes except 
property tax, so we have a hurdle to overcome there in developing an 
understanding on the part of the public of the fact that the Indians 


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really do contribute in the way of taxes. 

What are some of the things we are doing at the present 
time to overcome these hurdles that I’ve mentioned? Well, I've 
already mentioned one of them. Since 1952, we have cut down the 
out-of-school backlog by half. Now that ought to do a great deal 
toward advancing the educational level when we can get all the 
children in school. We're not satisfied yet. We won’t be satisfied 
until we get the other 10 percent in classrooms. We do, however, 
run into the attitude of "there'd be a number of them who would be 
out of school anyway." That's true. In this 10 percent that are 
out of school, there are a number of them who are children who have 
finished whatever the legal requirements are in their respective 
States. They're 14 or they're 16, and, therefore, legally they can 
drop out of school, but my feeling is that regardless of what the 
legal age is, we should keep those children in school until they 
have finished at least a high school education and so we shouldn't 
stop short of that. We have a big job ahead in doing just that. 

On the other hand, not all of them are in that teen-age group. A 
good many of them are still the six-year olds in one or two places 
in the country. In the Southwest, on the Navajo last year I think 
it was, about 53 percent of the six-year olds were not in school. 

You can see what will happen 25 or 30 years hence if we don't get 
them in school when they are six years of age. So we're working 
hard on that. 

We have for the last 10 or 12 years carried out a special 
program which we will be observing sometime today in this school. 
We've carried it out in, I believe, 8 or 10 schools for adolescent 
illiterates -- for youngsters who have reached adolescence who have 
never had an opportunity for schooling or have had very limited 
opportunity for schooling. We've developed a special type program 
that reaches down to where they are and tries to pull them up as 
far as we can. You will see some of that in this school. 

We are still carrying on educational programs for 30 per¬ 
cent of the children in Federal schools. Federal schools enroll 
children from isolated areas and from broken and inadequate homes. 
They are enrolled in 294 schools. As I pointed out, about 87 per¬ 
cent of them are still elementary children and about 60 percent of 
them are in the first six grades. So we have a tremendous job of 
tailoring a program to meet the needs of these non-English speaking 
youngsters from non-English speaking homes - for that 30 percent of 
school-age population. 

We are, on the other hand, helping the States to assume 
more and more of their responsibility by, whenever there is a 


8 









































































































































































problem because of the nontaxable land, helping them out financially. 
And we have people who work with States in that program developing 
community acceptance of responsibility for the education of Indians; 
we provide the funds to help them if there is any real problem. It's 
the States' responsibility to educate the children but we say if there 
is a financial problem that you can't meet caused by this nontaxable 
land, we will come in and help you meet your responsibility. We 
still have quite a long way to go in that program, although in 
several States like Minnesota, Wisconsin, Idaho, Washington, 
California, maybe there are others, we no longer operate any schools 
and all of the children are in public schools on the same basis as 
others. But in the areas, especially where education came late for 
the groups, we still have a long way to go in getting the Indian 
children and the Indian people up to the level of understanding that 
they can make their way into the public schools. We are carrying 
out an adult education program in 75 communities. This is a 
relatively new program in terms of years as compared with the 
program for school-age children, but we feel it is a very important 
program and one on which, n r. Gray, we especially want your help. 

Then in the Bureau, for two years now, we have had 
legislation which authorized a vocational program for adults 18 to 
35 years of age who lacked opportunities at their homes or on their 
reservations and who wanted to find employment elsewhere but didn't 
have the skills. This program will give them up to two years of 
trade training so that they can acquire employment skills. And, 
of course, there are many other programs that the Bureau carries on 
that provide in an incidental way educational returns such as 
extension programs, welfare programs, child welfare programs, credit 
programs, etc. There is a great deal of education involved in these 
other programs although it is indirect and we are not directly 
concerned with it. 

We're here to get help on certain aspects of our program. 

We want to get help by pooling all of our thinking and getting the 
help of Dr. Gray on how we can strengthen the instructional program, 
in our schools with children who come with bilingual problems. In 
other words, with English as second language, how we can strengthen 
the work in the classrooms and in the dormitories that will advance 
their level of literacy? And we also want help on how we can 
strengthen the adult education program and make it contribute to the 
advancement of literacy for the adults. Now this is a hard-working 
group and they are very capable people, Dr. Gray. They won't, I'm 
sure, hesitate to express their opinions and to discuss their 
problems. And, after we've finished these two days or three days 
of discussion, we might feel that everything is wrong with our 


9 
















program. I'm sure that we all realize that we all realize that we're 
doing good work, but we are not satisfied with good -- we want better. 
So we're not going to hesitate to bare our chests and expose our 
blemishes because that's what we want to correct - the blemishes - 
and we want your help. We want your help in detecting blemishes and 
then your help, and the help of everybody else in this group, with 
methods to improve our programs. I anticipate that this is going to 
be one of the most interesting conferences that we have ever had. 

I'm sure that in these three days, we can't expect to come out with 
plans for action programs. But if we can just become alert and aware 
to what some of our blemishes are, then as we operate programs that 
we know are good, we can at the same time overcome some of the 
weaknesses and make our programs better. So I hope you people will 
feel free, and I know you will if you live up to your reputations, 
to express yourselves frankly, asking questions of one another, and 
of Dr. Gray. I hope you'll take the opportunity to have lunch with 
him, or breakfast, or any time you can find him on the campus, 

(please don't wear him out completely so he won't want to come back 
again) to discuss your own particular ideas and problems with him. 

At the end of the three days, on Friday afternoon, the Area Directors 
of Schools will have charge of the program of what, as leaders, they 
are going to do when they get back home to start some action which 
will implement some of the ideas that we gain from this conference. 

We're very happy to have you with us. Dr. Gray, and we 
hope that you will enjoy your three days here because we hope some¬ 
time to ask you to come again. If there is anything we can do to 
make you more comfortable while you are here, I know that any one of 
us would be most happy to do so. With that, I will close so we can 
begin what I am sure will be a very interesting three days. 

At this time, I would like to introduce another guest that 
we have with us. I think some of you have met him before because he 
was in this country a couple of years ago and spent three months in 
the Albuquerque and the Phoenix Areas. The guest that I will 
introduce is from Bolivia. He's here this year for about three 
months. He's been with us in the Washington Office, and he is now 
spending some time here at Intermountain. He is Director General 
of Basic Education in the Ministry of Education in Bolivia. 

Mr. Ledesma, will you stand and let them see you so that they will 
know who you are? I know that Mr. Ledesma undoubtedly has problems 
similar to ours and we have problems similar to his, so I'm sure 
you can seek him out and he can seek you out for some very 
interesting discussions. 


10 


























































































Ill 


PROMOTING READING GROWTH AMONG CHILDREN AT PROGRESSIVELY HIGHER LEVELS 

Dr. William S. Gray 

(This address cannot be reproduced without Dr. Gray's permission) 


Following Mrs. Clark's gracious introduction, it is with 
a great deal of temerity that I undertake the discussions of today 
and tomorrow. 


BACKGROUND FACTS AND INTERPRETATIONS 

Before coming to Utah I read with keen interest the 
reports which were sent to me concerning your aims and the prob¬ 
lems faced in your work with Indian children. Of special signi¬ 
ficance was a statement made by Mrs. Thompson in the preface, 
Measuring the Achievement of Boys and Girls , to the effect that 
blood quantum and prereading language are not the determining fac¬ 
tors in later progress in reading. She concluded rather that the 
chief factor is the extent of the acculturation of the group. I 
am reminded in this connection of a series of studies in which I 
engaged over thirty years ago among Negro children in Chicago. 
Several schools were involved. We measured first the achievement 
of Negro children who had recently come from the South. We then 
measured the progress of those who had been reared in Chicago 
along with white children in the same economic-social class and 
under similar cultural influences. In the case of the second 
group, there was no difference between the white and the Negro 
children. These findings indicated that the character of the 
culture and the environment in which one grows up is a very vital 
factor in determining progress, particularly in reading. The re¬ 
sults of these and related studies justify a feeling of confidence 
that we're not working against an insurmountable difficulty. In¬ 
stead, we face the task of providing the kind of environment and 
learning experiences that make for normal progress in reading on 
the part of Indian boys and girls. 

I was impressed also with the finding that up to the 
fourth grade the boys and girls make normal progress, but beyond 
that grade they tend to lag behind. The same thing was true for 
a number of years with the Negro children, even those of the same 
economic-social strata as the white boys and girls with whom they 
attended school. Both tended to lag behind. Both were the prod¬ 
uct of a limited culture. One explanation for this lag ties in 
the fact that beginning with the fourth grade, or earlier, the 


11 



























































































































































reading materials generally used advance rapidly from those re¬ 
lating to familiar experiences and a known oral vocabulary to 
those which involve new concepts, more mature language patterns, 
and a vocabulary that is beyond the current mastery of the pupils. 
As the Negro boys and girls referred to earlier secured an in¬ 
creasing background of information and developed improved language 
habits, they began to make up their deficiences and to progress at 
a normal rate. I am sure that we can look forward with a great 
deal of confidence to the same type of progress among Indian boys 
and girls. 


I read with great interest, also, the 1958 report of the 
Edgecumbe meeting. I was greatly impressed with the detailed 
treatment and constructive point of view expressed concerning the 
language development of Indian children, the necessary prereading 
training needed, the techniques involved, and the initial devel¬ 
opment of reading ability through the use of experience charts. 

I noted, too, that ten pages were given to these items and only 
two pages to the higher stages of development in reading. As is 
true in discussions of all the language arts, we tend to give 
major emphasis to the initial stages and to analyze less fully 
the problems faced later. It has only been during the last 15 or 
20 years that the types of progress essential during the succes¬ 
sive stages of development in reading have been studied in detail 
and their nature defined. 

STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT IN READING 

In the light of the foregoing discussion, the problem 
that was assigned for discussion this morning is a very appro¬ 
priate one. How can we promote the progress of children through 
successive stages of development in reading? This means that we 
have, first of all, to identify the stages through which children 
pass on the way to maturity in reading. During the last 25 years 
there have been notable developments in this connection and the 
facts identified have been put together into a meaningful pattern. 
As a result we have at the present a fair insight concerning the 
major stages of development in reading. This advance has come 
about largely through three lines of development. 

The first included extensive and intensive studies of 
the interests of children. They showed that the primary-grade 
child is interested very largely in the things that are within his 
environment and that relate to the here and the now . The middle- 
grade child is no longer satisfied with learning experiences re¬ 
lating to his immediate environment. He now wants to explore the 


12 































































unknown and to satisfy interests and curiosities about the there 
and then . In doing so he must master new concepts, unfamiliar 
words, and more mature forms of expression. To provide the guid¬ 
ance needed places a major responsibility on teachers. The junior 
high school period is characterized by radical physiological 
changes. As they occur, children acquire new interests and face 
new problems. The validity of the division of the elementary 
school into the primary, middle, and upper grades is no mere acci¬ 
dent. It is supported through long experience in the product of 
long study of the learning problems and needs of children. 

The second line of development is the product of the 
studies of specialists in human development in which they have 
sought to identify the developmental needs of children at different 
stages of development. I have in mind, for example, Havighurst's 
outline of the developmental needs of children at successive age 
levels. A very interesting line of inquiry might be to find out 
how nearly they correspond with the developmental needs of Indian 
boys and girls. I am sure that there will be a general corres¬ 
pondence but with certain differences along the way. 

A third line of development is the result of studies of 
the actual achievement of boys and girls in reading. They show 
that in oral reading they make very rapid progress during the first 
three grades, less rapid progress in the middle grades, and a slow 
progress in junior and senior high school. In respect to speed of 
silent reading, progress at first parallels that of oral reading 
but surpasses the latter by the end of the primary grades, thus 
establishing two patterns of reading--the oral and the silent. In 
respect to comprehension there is steady development throughout the 
grades and high school, and even to the graduate level, indicating 
that as one gains in experience, increases in maturity, and devel¬ 
ops skill in the grasp of meaning, growth in comprehension rises to 
successively higher levels. 

Guided by the foregoing findings, we should strive to 
develop at every level of advancement all the attitudes and skills 
that characterize a good reader. They are: first, a consistent 
demand for meaning, a thoughtful, inquiring attitude in all reading 
activities, and breadth and depth of comprehension; second, funda¬ 
mental understandings of language and the basic word perception 
skills needed in all reading activities; third, materials and 
guidance that meet children's personal and social needs, build 
character, and contribute to growth through reading; fourth, ac¬ 
quaint children with their literary heritage, mold tastes, promote 
love of reading and good literature, and provide leads to wide 
personal reading on the part of every child. 


13 




































































































































































































































































One other comment merits repeated emphasis. In achieving 
the foregoing aims we face the problem of developing at each grade 
level all of the attitudes and skills that make for an effective 
reader at the child's present level of development. The primary 
child, for example, is interested in reading and enjoying the very 
simple stories that appear in early school readers. The challeng¬ 
ing problem at this level is to develop all the attitudes and 
skills that enable him to meet his present needs effectively and 
that prepare him for further growth. As he progresses gradually to 
the senior high school level he needs all of the reading attitudes 
and skills that will enable him to engage effectively in all re¬ 
quired reading and study activities. As an aid in achieving these 
goals, let us examine more closely, at the risk of some repetition, 
the problems faced at each of the successive levels of development 
in reading. 


STAGE OF PROMOTING READING READINESS 

The first stage of development in reading is one in which 
training and experience are provided that promote reading readiness 
As a result of extended studies we now know that there are several 
requisities to learning to read. The first is a reasonable degree 
of mental maturity. In your 1958 report the statement is made that 
the optimum mental age for learning to read is six and one-half 
years. This is based on the results of Washburne's study made in 
the 20's. In general, his conclusions can be accepted as desig¬ 
nating the optimum age. Gates, however, has presented clear evi¬ 
dence that many children can learn to read much earlier. In fact, 
the age of learning to read depends in part on the level of diffi¬ 
culty at which the initial presentation of reading is made. When I 
visited schools in Scotland, France, Belgium, and Switzerland in 
1953 and saw most of the boys and girls learning to read eagerly 
and with reasonable ease during the period from five to six, I con¬ 
cluded that perhaps we have placed the required level of mental 
capacity too high. Studies of the progress of Scotish children, 
for example, show that at six years of age when they enter the 
second grade they have achieved, on the Metropolitan Reading Test, 
a grade score of 2.3. This raises pointed questions concerning the 
rigidity with which we should hold to the 6.5 mental age standard. 

In the second place, learning to read presupposes ex¬ 
periences that are equal to and beyond those about which the child 
is reading. Unless he has a background of related experiences, he 
will be unable to make meaningful associations with the words on 
the page. 


A third requisite is a command of language and a 


14 




vocabulary that extends well beyond the language patterns and words 
used in the earliest books in reading. Someone stated yesterday 
that children should have a vocabulary of a thousand words before 
they attempt to learn to read. In the case of English-speaking 
children, such a vocabulary background is none too large. In the 
case of children whose mother tongue is not English, three to five 
hundred words are a desirable minimum. I have worked with teachers 
in New Mexico and Arizona who teach children from Mexico. They 
aim to develop a vocabulary of three hundred words or more before 
reading is introduced. Reports from industrial centers in this 
country in which the pupils come from foreign-speaking homes state 
that teachers aim to develop an oral vocabulary of from three to 
five hundred words before reading is introduced. The theory back 
of such requirements is that a child is unable to associate mean¬ 
ings with printed words until he has learned to use words orally 
in situations that have meaning and significance. 

A fourth requisite is ability to make visual and auditory 
discriminations. This is a universal requirement. In the case of 
foreign-speaking children, there is always a possibility that the 
basic sounds which they use in their language do not correspond 
exactly with those in English. Several years ago, for example, I 
gave oral reading tests to Czechoslovakian children in Gary, 

Indiana. A comparison of the phonemes in the first five paragraphs 
of the Standardized Oral Reading Paragraphs and in the 
Czechoslovakian language showed that whereas there were 225 sounds 
and combinations of sounds in the former, only 187 of them were 
represented in the latter. Consequently the Czechoslovakian 
children were not sensitive to some of the important sounds in our 
own language. It follows that one of the essential steps in pre¬ 
paring children for reading, who do not grow up in our culture, is 
to check the extent of their auditory discrimination of the basic 
sounds in English, and to provide any training that may be needed. 

I was impressed yesterday with the fact that the first 
teacher, due in part to her embarrassment and the tension that she 
was under, often spoke the new words in the lesson with her face 
turned away from the class and with a minimum of lip action. As a 
teacher introduces new words, she should pronounce them clearly and 
distinctly with the children looking directly at her. It is 
through such auditory and visual models that the child unconsciously 
acquires good pronunciation habits. This does not mean that we 
should teach all children how to operate the organs of speech. I 
am saying that the first step is to give the child a clear, vivid 
presentation of the pronunciation of the new words used. As a 
matter of fact, most of the words that a child adds to his oral 
vocabulary are learned as he hears others use them. To facilitate 


15 



















































































































































this process the teacher can follow to advantage the steps first 
suggested. Practice periods should also be provided in which words 
that are similar in pronunciation are presented to the child to see 
if he can distinguish between them. 

Another important requisite of learning to read is a 
recognition of the fact that written or printed symbols convey 
meanings. You will recall that I spoke yesterday of the advisa¬ 
bility of writing new words upon the black board as they are intro¬ 
duced in a lesson. This is one way in which the teacher can re¬ 
veal to the child that words convey meanings and that he can, in 
turn, derive meanings by recognizing the words he sees. In most 
areas of our country boys and girls grow up in an environment of 
signs and in an atmosphere of reading. As a result they learn to 
distinguish between milk wagons, for example, by the names that 
are written on them as well as by their color. They learn also to 
recognize the words go and stop on the traffic signs by the red and 
green colors that accompany them. By the time most children enter 
school, they have acquired a consciousness of printed symbols and 
their significance that many Indian children do not acquire from 
their environment. In preparing the latter for reading, we must 
begin at the foundation and do for them what their culture has not 
done. 


The length of the period for reading readiness varies 
widely among individuals and groups. Some children, as you know, 
come to school fully prepared to learn to read. As a matter of 
fact, an increasing number of them are now learning to read at 
home. This is true, particularly, during the last five years when 
parents have become greatly concerned about the progress of chil¬ 
dren in reading. Many children learn to read more or less on their 
own as they watch mother and father read and as they see written 
or printed words when viewing a television program. Thus, they 
receive a type of stimulus to read that many Indian children do not 
have. Consequently, the effort to promote reading readiness ex¬ 
tends over a longer or shorter period of time depending on circum¬ 
stances . 


Someone said yesterday that he used about a year in 
promoting reading readiness among Indian children. The broader the 
background that you can give them, the richer the experiences, the 
more motivation you provide for learning to read, the more rapidly 
will children learn to read. 

When is reading readiness attained? There is no single 
point that has been discovered that clearly identifies the stage 
of reading readiness. It occurs when the child’s total development 


16 


















































































































































and his inner drives are sufficient to enable him to master the 
basic attitudes and skills involved in beginning reading. Whereas, 
reading readiness tests are valuable in estimating a child's 
readiness to learn to read, I would rely as a final device on the 
use of incidental reading activities. They enable you to find out 
if children are interested in learning to read, if they are able to 
focus attention on the learning activities provided, and if they 
are able to remember from one day to the next what has been pre¬ 
sented, As indicated earlier, children require different periods 
of time to attain reading readiness. Some will do so very rapidly; 
others will progress much more slowly. The school should be so 
organized that it can launch children into the second stage of 
learning to read as rapidly as they are ready for it. 

INITIAL STAGE IN LEARNING TO READ 

The second stage of development in reading is commonly 
known as the initial period in learning to read. It involves about 
a year's training and is usually completed in grade one by those 
who make normal progress. In the case of Indian children it may 
occur during the second school year or even later. But in whatever 
grade reading instruction begins, it will doubtless require a 
shorter period for your Indian youth who are ten years old than for 
six-year old children. They are more mature and we would expect 
them to make more rapid progress. I marvel at what they are 
achieving. 


This initial stage in learning to read is organized 
around three very definite problems. The first is the development 
of initial reading interests and attitudes beyond those that were 
provided during the reading readiness stage. This is typically 
done during the so-called preprimer stage. It involves the arousal 
of interest in learning to read well, developing a thoughtful 
reading attitude and a concern for meaning, and in establishing a 
sight vocabulary of some 50 or more words so that when the child 
reaches the primer stage he will not be blocked continuously by 
new words. Instead, he will have a reservoir of known words of 
high frequency upon which he can draw. 

A related problem which arises at this time is concerned 
with the comparative value of the use of preprimers and experience 
charts. Each has advantages and disadvantages. Experience charts 
have the advantage that they are based on experiences that are 
highly charged with interest and meaning. Consequently, associa¬ 
tions between words and their meanings can be quickly developed. 
Some of the disadvantages of the use of experience charts are that 
many teachers are not skillful in developing them and they require 


17 









much time to develop. As a result, children have only a limited 
amount of material to read. 

An advantage of some use of printed materials is that 
they give repeated emphasis to the basic words that are essential 
in early reading activities and thus help to develop a highly func¬ 
tional sight vocabulary as a foundation on which to build later 
reading activities. A serious limitation is that publishers have 
as yet been unwilling to publish preprimers for different cultural 
groups. I have urged them to do so for years. They state that too 
much is involved financially and they can't afford to take the risk. 
I hope ultimately that we can secure materials for use during the 
preprimer stage that are very closely related to the actual experi¬ 
ences and home environment of the boys and girls in specific 
cultural groups. 

In teaching Indian children and adults to read you have 
an opportunity to prepare appropriate materials and thus set a 
pattern that will stimulate increased demand by other groups for 
equally appropriate materials. As implied above, both experience 
charts and printed materials are essential. I would use experience 
charts as early as during the reading readiness period as an aid to 
children so that what we say and do can be represented by written 
words and recorded on the blackboard or charts. By so doing 
children will recognize that a given word on the blackboard cor¬ 
responds to a specific spoken word with a definite meaning. 

As the child masters the vocabulary of simple material he 
acquires readiness to learn to engage in continuous meaningful 
reading from a primer or other book. To do this he must learn to 
follow the lines one after the other and to go from the end of one 
line to the beginning of the next. The use of a card to guide the 
child in looking at successive words in order, and in going from 
one line to the next, is often very helpful. These and many other 
devices have been developed for the purpose of helping the child 
master the more routine habits involved in learning to engage in 
continuous reading from a book. 

But even more important than the problem just described is 
that of cultivating the habit of anticipating and grasping the 
meaning of the stories read. One of the most skillful teachers 
that I have known in this respect was Miss Marjorie Hardy, a former 
staff member of our laboratory school. I observed her teaching 
time after time and was intrigued by the techniques she used. At 
the beginning of each lesson she sat down before her group with 
eager anticipation written all over her face. She would, first, 
help the pupils find the first page of the story to be read. Then 


18 






















































she would say, "Here is a story that I know you will enjoy. Let us 
look first at the pictures to find out what the story is about." 
After discussing possible story events she would say, "Let us read 
the first line to find out the name of the girl in this story." 

The pupils would read the line silently and identify the name with 
or without help. Miss Hardy would then say, "I wonder what Mary 
is going to do in this story. Read the next two lines to see if 
you can find out." If the children needed help on any words they 
would raise their hands. Day after day throughout the primer 
period Miss Hardy stimulated the boys and girls in her class to 
anticipate the sequence of ideas in the stories they were reading. 
Within a relatively short period of time they caught the idea that 
a story presents a sequence of events and became inquiring readers 
as they read line after line and page after page. This example 
illustrates the kind of strategic goal at a particular stage of 
development that needs to be emphasized in order to develop, on the 
part of children, the habit of looking for the meaning of what is 
read. 


Throughout the two stages I have described, children 
grow in power of word recognition. They first acquire a sight 
vocabulary through repeated contacts with words in interesting 
content; as their sight vocabulary increases comparisons are made 
of the forms of words to identify differences in them. Furthermore, 
the fact is emphasized repeatedly that different word forms repre¬ 
sent different meanings. Progress in this connection is facili¬ 
tated by such questions as, "What is the word that means hat and 
the word that means cat? " Thus during the initial stage in learn¬ 
ing to read, a good teacher develops visual discrimination among 
words and sensitivity to their meaning. 

As pupils gain facility in reading from a simple book, a 
next step forward is to acquire increasing ability to read on their 
own. One of the techniques used is a follow-up of Miss Hardy's 
procedure. Beginning early in the Book I stage, she directs at¬ 
tention at first through the use of questions to very short units. 
Gradually she focused attention on units of greater length. The 
questions, too, became broader in scope until finally they related 
to important meaning on the page as a whole. She was thus trying 
to reduce the need for teacher guidance by developing power to 
grasp increasingly hard units of meaning. About 1900 Superintendent 
Spaulding of Cleveland made a relevant statement that impressed me 
very much. It was to this effect that just as in acquiring oral 
language a child learns through the models others present, so in 
learning to read he profits from the patterns teachers set for him. 
You will note that in the use of the foregoing procedures con¬ 
scious effort was made to begin with very simple forms of reading 


19 



and to promote increasing independence and greater power in reading 
more difficult materials. 

Near the end of the first grade, the teacher should ob¬ 
serve carefully to determine the extent to which the children have 
acquired essential attitudes and skills. At this point I am going 
to describe briefly a lesson I observed in 1916 in Detroit. It 
was a revelation to me at that time and influenced my thinking a 
great deal about the goals to be achieved during the initial stage 
in learning to read. As I entered the classroom an experienced 
teacher was just beginning a lesson. As was her practice, near the 
end of the year her group was divided into two sections. She went 
first to one group and discussed with them the pictures accompanying 
a story and stimulated interest in reading it silently. Before 
leaving them she directed attention to some very simple questions 
written on the black board, saying, "As you read, find the answers 
to these questions. I will return again soon to discuss them with 
you." She then went to the other group and taught them by the 
techniques which I described above, giving one type of help to one 
child and a different type to another. At the end of the period, 
she said to one boy, "You have been doing very well, John, the last 
few days. Would you like to go into the other group tomorrow?" 

His face beamed with pleasure as he said, "Yes." At the close of 
the class period I said to the teacher, "I am interested in the 
technique you used today. What were you seeking to achieve?" In 
reply she said, "I have found through long experience that by the 
end of the first grade it is advisable for my pupils to have ad¬ 
vanced to the point where they can read simple material easily and 
independently. As soon as I find that some of my pupils can do 
this, I begin to give them opportunities to read simple materials 
silently while I continue to work intensively with the pupils who 
are less advanced. At first there were twelve in the slower group 
I just taught. Now there are eight. My aim is to have all of 
them able to read independently by the end of the year." "Why is 
that so important?" I asked. "There are two reasons," she replied. 
"Such a foundation is essential in preparing pupils for the more 
advanced training given in the second and third grades. Further¬ 
more, I want my pupils to be able to read during the summer so that 
they will continue to grow in reading ability rather than to lose 
any of the progress made during the first grade. To this end I 
provide materials for them to take home and read. If my pupils are 
to understand and enjoy what they read I must get them to the 
point where they are able to read independently for meaning by the 
end of the first grade." 

Whether each school should adopt the particular plan 
described is irrelevant here. It is essential, however, that each 


20 































































































































teacher of pupils at the initial stage of learning to read should 
ask herself, "How can I get my pupils to the point early where they 
are able to read simple material independently for pleasure or to 
secure interesting information?" Dr. Morrison, in a notable book 
published about twenty-five years ago, said that when a pupil has 
reached this stage of development he has acquired reading adapta¬ 
tion. By this he meant ability to adopt instantly an attitude of 
absorbed attention when starting to read, to demand meaning as he 
reads, to anticipate the sequence of ideas in a passage, and to 
recognize independently and accurately many simple words. Unfor¬ 
tunately current methods of teaching all too frequently keep the 
child's attention centered so exclusively on word recognition that 
he doesn't have the opportunity to develop the attitudes and skills 
essential in reading for meaning. 

STAGE OF RAPID MASTERY OF BASIC READING ATTITUDES AND SKILLS 

As soon as a child has achieved the goals of the initial 
period in learning to read he is ready for a higher level of 
development in reading. This occurs for most pupils during the 
second and third years of schooling. The chief aim now is the 
development of capacity to read with ease and understanding, either 
orally or silently, any material within the range of familiar ex¬ 
perience that is expressed in the common vocabulary of second and 
third-grade children. Even a brief survey of the basal readers for 
these grades shows that they provide the child with interesting and 
enriching experiences relating to the here and now , gradually in¬ 
troducing experiences beyond that range. There are three major 
problems faced during this period in promoting added competence in 
reading. 


Of major importance is the development of increased 
mastery of all the basic aspects of reading including word recog¬ 
nition, comprehension, fluency in both oral and silent reading, 
and interest in personal reading. Let us examine, first, some of 
the problems faced in promoting increased skill in word recognition. 
During the earlier stages of development, simple types of training 
were given in visual and auditory discrimination, and a sight vo¬ 
cabulary was acquired. Pupils also became increasingly sensitive 
to distinguishing parts of words and began to note differences in 
their form and sound. Growth was promoted by writing on the black 
board two, three, or four familiar sight words beginning with the 
same letter and by directing attention to differences both in their 
forms and sounds. During the latter part of the first grade, the 
child learned many of the more frequently used consonants. He also 
learned the substitution technique in recognizing many new words. 

Let us assume, for example, that he knows the letter b. from words 


21 



















































































that he has been reading. When he sees the word rat , he substitutes 
the letter b, for the letter r. and thus derives the word bat . The 
chief reason for postponing vigorous emphasis on the sounds of some 
letters is that studies of speech development show that many children 
do not acquire auditory discrimination of all the consonants of 
sounds until between six and seven and sometimes between seven and 
eight years of age. It is essential, I believe, in the case of 
Indian children not to emphasize the sounds of specific letters un¬ 
til they have become familiar with them as parts of words which 
they use orally. 

During the second and third grades the children complete 
the recognition of the remaining consonants, the consonant blends, 
and the vowels. They also learn that the sounds of vowels are in¬ 
fluenced by the other letters with which they are used. For ex¬ 
ample, if the teacher writes on the black board the words cat , rat , 
bat , and sat , the child quickly sees that each begins with a con¬ 
sonant and ends with a consonant; also that the vowel has the short 
sound. By studying similarly bake , rake, and cake , he discovers 
that in short words that end in e_ the middle vowel sound is long. 
Similarly he learns that the sound of vowels differs when they are 
followed by x or X: During the third stage of development, all the 
vowels and the simple principles that govern their sounds are 
learned. Because many words in our language are not spelled regu¬ 
larly the child should be told, "When you pronounce a word, ask 
yourself if it sounds like a word you know; also if it fits into 
the meaning of the sentence you are reading. If it doesn't, go to 
the teacher and ask for help." To urge pupils to pronounce words 
independently without training them to check their pronunciations 
in these two ways is open to vigorous criticism. 

Equally important is the need for elementary training in 
dividing words into syllables. Pupils should learn that in words 
such as patter , the first consonant having two middle consonants, 
goes with the preceding vowel and the latter has a short sound. In 
the case of a word with one middle consonant, such as bacon, the 
middle consonant usually goes with the following vowel and the 
sound of the first vowel is long. Thus during the third stage of 
development in reading, a foundation is laid for attacking longer 
and more difficult words in the middle grades. 

The second problem during this stage is to promote in¬ 
creased ability to comprehend what is read. Time will permit em¬ 
phasis on only one of the problems involved, namely, to promote 
increased sensitivity to the meaning of the story whole. A child 
should gradually recognize that a story is made up of a sequence of 
events with a beginning, a sequence of events, and an end, and that 


22 








all of the parts contribute to the meaning and understanding of the 
whole. Likewise, everything in a well-written descriptive paragraph 
or selection provides a well-rounded view of the thing described. 

In the second and third grades, therefore, it is impor¬ 
tant to emphasize the meaning of the story whole, the relationship 
of parts to the whole, the identification of antecedents, and a 
clear grasp of successive points made by the author. Obviously, 
the pupil now advances far beyond the stage at which he merely 
reads larger and larger units without guidance to reading to secure 
a more thorough understanding of the selection whole. This is 
achieved through carefully planned guidance. One of my questions 
yesterday aimed to direct attention to a common tendency among 
teachers to ask one detailed question after another which leaves 
the child at the end with only a grasp of a series of isolated facts. 
Instead, much of the training given should promote increased ability 
to look for the broader meanings in what is read, to see the selec¬ 
tion as a unified whole, to grasp the details of a descriptive para¬ 
graph in their essential relationships, and to answer questions in 
the light of all the facts presented. 

Only two of the developmental problems of the third stage 
in a reading program have been emphasized. Because of time limita¬ 
tions we must proceed to the second general problem of this stage. 

It relates to the establishment of partially mastered habits. It 
was very evident in the case of many of the pupils whom we observed 
yesterday that whereas they were gaining some degree of fluency in 
reading, they were proceeding rather slowly and with much hesita¬ 
tion. They were doing very well from many points of view but were 
lacking many of the characteristics of a mature reader. Experience 
shows clearly that boys and girls in the second and third grades 
need to read a great deal of simple material in order to acquire 
habits of fluent reading. In many developmental lessons we rightly 
aim to promote greater competence in recognizing new words and in 
acquiring new meanings. Supplementing such training, pupils need 
practice in reading that will enable them to become fluent, meaning¬ 
ful readers both silently and orally. This involves the use of 
reading material a half grade or more below that used in the de¬ 
velopmental lessons described above. Such reading is usually as¬ 
signed during the afternoon reading period. It may take the form 
of a sight oral reading lesson or directed silent reading. The 
former may be for enjoyment and the latter to find answers to 
questions or to prepare for a dramatization. Two of the goals 
sought are increased fluency in both types of reading and a speed 
of silent reading beyond that of oral reading. These results are 
not acquired primarily through mechanical practice; they are the 
product of much reading of simple, interesting material in which 


23 























































































there is an inner urge to follow the events of an intriguing story 
or to find the answer to a challenging question. 

The third problem faced during this stage is to identify 
and correct deficiencies in reading among individuals. A procedure 
which I have found helpful in this connection is to select a pupil 
each week for intensive study. It is advisable to study, first, 
those who are proceeding least rapidly or are encountering serious 
difficulty. During the reading lesson each day the teacher records 
on a sheet of paper the kinds of errors made and the difficulties 
encountered. She studies also the pupil's difficulties in other 
reading activities. She talks to him about his reading interests 
and the amount he reads at home. During the course of a week, an 
observant teacher can secure as much valuable information for use 
in diagnosing the needs of a child as can be obtained in a labora¬ 
tory reading clinic during a day, which is the usual length of a 
diagnostic period. This is due to the fact that the classroom 
teacher is studying a child in normal reading situations in which 
the child reveals clearly the types of difficulty that retard his 
progress. It is very important that a teacher use not only effec¬ 
tive devices for finding out the nature of the difficulties faced 
but that she reserve time in the daily schedule to provide needed 
help for individuals. If a poor reader is to advance along with 
other children he must be given help and guidance over and above 
that which is normally provided. 

What we have done thus far is to describe some of the 
problems faced in promoting growth in reading to the point where 
pupils can read anything within the range of familiar experience 
and their oral vocabulary and are able to read more rapidly silently 
than orally. What is the next step? Those who have made normal 
progress are now prepared to extend their experiences through 
reading beyond the range of the here and now, and to acquire in¬ 
creased power, efficiency, and excellence in reading. 

THE STAGE OF INCREASED POWER, EFFICIENCY, AND EXCELLENCE IN READING 

A distinguishing fact about this stage, of development in 
reading is the broader interest which pupils now exhibit and 

which can be met only through the use of materials with wider 
vocabularies, new concepts, and more mature language forms. Pupils 
must, therefore, acquire the additional attitudes and skills needed 
in both required and personal reading. Some of the problems faced 
were well-illustrated in the last lesson we observed yesterday. 

The children were reading in a field that was more or less unfa¬ 
miliar to them and in which many new words, concepts, and ideas 
were presented. This is typical of much of the reading material 


24 





















assigned in the fourth, fifth, and sixth grades. For that reason 
a good teacher first provides needed background for the child. 

This involves, first, the recall of experiences that are related to 
and help the child to understand the materials to be read. The 
presentation of pictures or the use of a film often helps to pro¬ 
vide a background of ideas and concepts that prepares pupils to 
interpret a selection. 

Because so little has been known about the nature of many 
of the problems faced, the middle grades have often been referred to 
as M no man's land in reading." As a result, however, of classroom 
experience and research, we now know that one of the most challeng¬ 
ing problems which the reader faces is to visualize clearly the new 
things, scenes, and events about which he reads. He can be greatly 
helped through such guidance as the following: "What picture did 
you get as you read this paragraph, John?" "Was your picture the 
same as his, Mary?" "How does it differ?" "Let us reread the para¬ 
graph to see which is the most accurate." Whereas pupils in reading 
about the here and now in the primary grades recall familiar scenes 
and events, when they read about the there and then in the middle 
grades they must make effective use of creative imagination. Ina¬ 
bility to do so readily is one explanation for the slowing down of 
progress in the middle grades to which reference was made earlier. 

A closely related problem arises from the fact that the 
language patterns used in the middle grades are more complex and 
involved than those which the children ordinarily use. Teachers 
can often help pupils to see the relationship of various parts of 
sentences and paragraphs to each other, and hence their meaning, 
by a diagram, for example, of the relationship of a clause to the 
sentence as a whole, or by an outlining on the black board of the 
main points and supporting details of a paragraph. Promoting 
growth among children in meeting the new tasks and responsibilities 
faced in reading materials that are beyond the range of familiar 
experience and the language patterns they use is one of the most 
challenging problems of the middle grades, and one which our schools 
as yet have not fully mastered. In an article on the preparation 
of teachers of reading which I plan to prepare shortly, I shall 
recommend that every elementary and high-school teacher should be 
given intensive training in reading which does three things: brings 
them face-to-face with the challenging problems of interpretation 
that boys and girls face; gives them a clear understanding of the 
nature of the difficulties involved; and acquaints them with the 
steps to take in overcoming such difficulties. 


25 
















































THE STAGE OF REFINING READING INTERESTS AND HABITS 


As children reach adolescence, physiological changes 
occur that are accompanied by new interests, motives, and drives. 
You will recall that in the primary grades the child is interested, 
chiefly, in the things and activities in his immediate environment. 
In the middle grades his interests broaden and he begins to explore 
the world at large. In the upper grades he acquires new interests 
and faces many personal and social problems that require carefully 
thought-out and rational solutions. Much of the reading material 
provided for young adolescents aims to help satisfy these interests 
and needs. Accordingly, one of the challenging problems that 
teachers face is to help boys and girls interpret what they read 
rationally and to come to sound conclusions. 

If you observe a typical junior high school class in 
reading, you will find that most boys and girls answer in an off¬ 
hand manner most of the questions that are raised. Some of these 
answers are based upon prejudices, biases, and misconceptions that 
have been acquired in the home and community. One step in over¬ 
coming this tendency is to train boys and girls to read with sus¬ 
pended judgment, to search for the evidence that justifies sound 
conclusions, and to teach them how to find the materials that will 
help them to solve a new problem, acquire a new pattern of conduct, 
or plan a new course of action. 

In the senior high school boys and girls continue to be 
interested in personal problems, but they also begin to acquire a 
broader outlook. They ask, for example, "What can I do to make a 
place for myself in the world?" The older boys and girls in your 
vocational school are facing the same kind of problem that is 
faced by other adolescents. 

Let us consider, first, the problems of those who are 
going to continue in school rather than go into the vocations. As 
they advance into senior high school they begin to be concerned 
with the mastering of specific subjects. They want to study his¬ 
tory, literature, mathematics, and science. Judging from current 
curriculum trends there is going to be more vigorous emphasis in 
the future on sequential learning in these various fields. 

In the study of specific subjects high school students 
face challenging reading problems, as is true in the case of the 
boys in your school who are attempting to read the directions for 
a drawing or to interpret a diagram. This is due to the fact that 
each content field has its own vocabulary, body of concepts, mode 
of expressing ideas, and guiding principles. The basic reading 


26 















instruction provided throughout the grades and high school lays a 
foundation of attitudes and skills needed in all reading activities. 
The content teachers must build upon this foundation and prepare 
students to read effectively in their respective fields. No one 
but the teacher of mechanical drawing can give the child the kind 
of guidance that he needs in understanding and interpreting the 
materials important to that field. Likewise, no one but the mathe¬ 
matics teacher can teach boys and girls to read mathematically; 
no one but the history teacher can teach boys and girls to engage 
expertly in historical interpretation; and no one but the social 
science teacher can teach boys and girls to study a social problem, 
broadly and deeply, marshall all of the pertinent facts read, and 
reach sound conclusions in the light of all they know or can find 
out through additional reading. 

CONCLUDING STATEMENTS 

In the discussion thus far I have not tried to provide 
answers to all the problems you face in promoting growth in and 
through reading among Indian youth. What I have tried to do is to 
provide a background for the discussions that will follow. Spe¬ 
cifically, I have discussed all too briefly five successive stages 
of development in reading. It is very important that those who 
plan and administer reading programs should be very sensitive to 
the expanding needs of children at their respective stages of 
development in reading. Just as Havighurst has said that the child 
faces a succession of developmental needs on the road to maturity, 
so in learning to read there is a sequence of problems that relate 
closely to the child's stage of development. Steps should be 
taken at each stage to prepare for higher levels of achievement. 

Summarized briefly, they are, first, the stage at which 
the child acquires readiness to learn to read with reasonable ease 
and facility. The second is the initial stage in learning to read 
in which the child learns to engage in continuous meaningful read¬ 
ing of very simple material. The third stage is characterized by 
rapid progress in all the basic attitudes and skills that enable 
the pupil to read anything in the field of familiar experience 
that is expressed in his everyday vocabulary and language patterns. 
He also acquires ability to read silently more rapidly than orally. 
During the fourth stage the pupil greatly extends and enriches his 
experiences through reading and develops increased power, fluency, 
and efficiency in reading. The chief aims of the fifth stage are 
to refine reading interests, tastes, and skills. 

In achieving these ends it is essential to use materials 
adapted to the child's level of development and a consistent 


27 






methodology. I believe that for the present you will have to se¬ 
lect materials from different books that relate as closely as pos¬ 
sible to the experiences of the children under your instruction. 

As their experiences are edriched children should grow in 
their understanding of the culture in which they will live most of 
their lives. I wish that books were available that achieved this 
aim more gradually for Indian children. In planning the total pro¬ 
gram for them we should keep in mind the statement of Traxler, 
McCullough, and Strang: "Learning to read is a lifelong process., 
Each stage in the development of a child brings new problems and 
new demands which increase the scope of the reading competence that 
he needs." 


It is my hope that the stages of development in reading 
which we have discussed will help to identify the succession of 
steps essential, as we bring the Navajo child from his native home 
and try to prepare him for intelligent participation in the culture 
in which he will spend most of his life. 


28 









IV 


THE NATURE OF READING AND THE BASIC ATTITUDES AND SKILLS INVOLVED 
Illustrated Lecture - Dr. William S. Gray 
(This address cannot be reproduced without Dr. Gray's permission) 


We are facing today an unprecedented demand for efficient 
readers. This is due to two trends, first: the increasing number 
of people who find it necessary to use reading in meeting the needs 
of daily life, and second, the increasing demands that current life 
makes upon us today. Over 500,000 adults last year were registered 
in reading classes--lawyers, doctors, preachers, laymen--because 
their ability to read was inadequate to meet the demands that were 
made upon them as readers. The need for greater competence in 
reading has increased so rapidly that schools and colleges have 
found it difficult to provide all of the training that is required. 
One of the chief reasons for recent criticisms of the schools is 
not that reading is less taught than formerly--it is because schools 
find it very difficult to keep up with the increasing demand made 
upon them for more efficient readers. 

GROWTH OF PRESENT CONCEPT OF THE READING ACT 

In the course of my experience as a teacher, which began 
in 1904, there have been four successive concepts of the nature of 
the reading act and what is involved in it. During my first year 
as a teacher I was guided by the following purposes in teaching 
reading: to help boys and girls master the mechanics of reading; 

to teach them to read well orally; and to cultivate an appreciation 
of literary selections chosen largely from the adult point of view. 
Those aims were so consciously before everybody that they were 
stressed vigorously during the first teachers' institute that I 
attended. When the county superintendent visited my school during 
the year, he criticized my teaching and made suggestions in the 
light of these standards. 

During the period from 1904 to 1920, many significant 
changes occurred in American life. First of all, the demand for 
reading among adults increased by leaps and bounds. People were 
anxious to find out what was going on abroad, what was the cause of 
World War I, what was the position that we should take here. A 
second event that greatly changed the prevailing concept of reading 
was the discovery that silent reading was, for many purposes, a 
much more economical and effective mode of reading than oral reading. 
By 1924 emphasis in teaching reading had shifted from the three 
elements that I mentioned earlier to speed and comprehension. For 


29 




a decade or more these two aspects of reading were foremost in the 
minds of many teachers with the result that oral reading received 
little or no emphasis in some schools. Furthermore, the tests 
which were developed were built on the assumption that speed and 
comprehension were the most important aspects of reading. This 
point of view was reflected in many of the earlier tests and in 
some which are still in use. 

Between 1925 and 1936 many significant developments 
occurred which led to further changes in our concept of reading. 

The depression, for example, stimulated an inquiring attitude 
toward the soundness of our economic system which led to much care¬ 
ful reading both in and out of school. Furthermore, propaganda 
which aimed to undermine confidence in our American way of life and 
form of government was published and distributed widely. As a re¬ 
sult, much training in propaganda analysis was provided in schools 
and colleges and among adults. By 1936 emphasis in teaching read¬ 
ing went far beyond speed and comprehension. The view was adopted 
that it must also cultivate the critical evaluation of the ideas 
presented. 


As World War II came on and passed, we began to study the 
causes of that war and the steps essential to develop A just and 
sound peace. The demands faced by reading in this connection made 
us aware of another significant aspect of reading, namely, integra¬ 
tion. It implies that the reader must combine the ideas which he 
secures through reading with those he already has in mind so that 
wrong impressions are corrected, new insights gained, rational 
attitudes adopted, and improved habits of thinking and behaving 
acquired. 


This fourth dimension of reading is the heart of the 
learning act in reading and has received all too little emphasis 
in teaching in the past. 

As indicated by the foregoing discussion, reading is now 
conceived as an activity of four dimensions. These dimensions are 
shown in Diagram 1* in terms of four concrete circles which are 
labeled word perception, grasp of meaning, thoughtful reaction, 
and integration. Although shown here separately, they are closely 
integrated in the act of reading and occur more or less simultane¬ 
ously. Furthermore, they are essential aspects of good reading 
from the earliest grades on and should be cultivated daily as 


* See pages 42-49 for diagrams referred to in this address. 


30 











pupils read to secure pleasure or to solve problems that are adapted 
to their level of maturity and school progress. 

With these facts in mind, attention is directed next to 
the nature of the understandings, attitudes, and skills needed to 
insure competent readers. We shall consider, first, those that 
are common to most reading activities in which children and adults 
engage. In making use of diagrams in this connection, I am well 
aware that the complex steps and processes involved in reading 
cannot be represented accurately by a few lines. Let us call my 
presentation, therefore, an experiment in the combined use of 
visual aids and verbal description in attempting to identify the 
basic attitudes and skills involved in reading. 

FOUR ASPECTS OF READING 

It seems desirable to present first a bird's eye view of 
the total act of reading. See Diagram 2. As a preliminary step 
in any reading activity, the reader directs his attention to the 
printed page with his mind intent on meaning. See A at the left 
of the diagram. As he focuses his eyes on the beginning of the 
first line, impressions are received on the retina (see B). As his 
eyes move along the lines, a series of impressions are received. 
These in turn arouse nervous impulses (see C) which are transmitted 
over nerve channels to the visual centers of the brain (see D) 
where meaning and pronunciation associations are aroused. These 
are represented separately by E above and F below for the purpose 
of identification. As meaning associations are aroused (see 
Section II of this diagram^ they are fused into the idea or se¬ 
quence of ideas (see G) which the author intended to convey. 

As the meanings of the first words in a sentence are 
recognized, they are held in suspense in the mind of the reader 
until all of the words have been read and a full, consistent mean¬ 
ing has been derived. For example, in reading the words, "The boy 
hit a" the reader must know whether it was "a boy" or "a dog" that 
was hit before the meaning of the sentence is clear and complete. 
Similarly, in reading a paragraph, a selection, or an entire book, 
the ideas apprehended early are combined with those acquired later 
in securing a clear understanding of the whole. This fact is 
dramatically illustrated when we read a detective story and follow 
it through to the end. We wonder how all of the threads are ulti¬ 
mately going to be brought together. Finally a single sentence is 
stated which sets off the response, "Oh, I see how it is." In 
other words the one sentence was combined with everything that had 
been read before and a clear interpretation was possible. 


31 




Look next at Section III of the diagram. As a good reader 
grasps the ideas presented, he reacts thoughtfully to them (see H) 
in an effort to identify their soundness and vhlue. In this con¬ 
nection, he makes use of all he knows (see I) that has a bearing 
upon the problem which he has been reading. Such reading is ac¬ 
companied by emotional reactions (see J, below) that reflect the 
reader's attitude toward the ideas apprehended. As the foregoing 
steps occur, the good reader combines the ideas read (see K) with 
previous experiences and understandings (see L) so that attitudes 
are acquired, and improved ways of thinking and behaving are es¬ 
tablished. These products of the reading act now become a part of 
the reader's total resources as shown by the line from K to L at 
the top. 


DEVELOPING WORD PERCEPTION IN READING 

Each of the four aspects of reading that has been de¬ 
scribed is of great importance and should be stressed from the very 
beginning of reading instruction. Unfortunately, the last two-- 
thoughtful reaction and integration--have received far too little 
attention or have been entirely neglected in many reading programs 
in the past. Let us now examine more fully each of the four major 
aspects of reading for a more detailed view of the understandings, 
attitudes, and skills involved. Attention will be directed first 
to word perception. (See Diagram 3). As reading is generally 
taught today, training in visual and auditory discrimination pre¬ 
cedes and accompanies early lessons in learning to read. A child 
is thus aided in recognizing readily both the distinguishing visual 
characteristics of words and their sound elements. In the earliest 
reading lessons, words of very wide usage among children are pre¬ 
sented in contexts that are highly charged with meaning. As a re¬ 
sult, they are learned quickly and can be used at once in rewarding 
reading activities. These sight words also serve as essential aids 
in developing many of the skills needed in recognizing other words. 

Diagram 3 shows that when the nervous impulses at C which 
come from the retina of the eye, B, reach the visual centers of the 
brain, D, at least three groups of problems arise which are repre¬ 
sented by the circles designated SV, P, and M. The first group, 

SV, relates to the major understanding, attitudes, and skills in¬ 
volved in the mastery of a sight vocabulary. The center of the 
circle represents the vivid meanings that are associated with the 
respective words presented. 

Additional attitudes and skills involved are represented 
by three bands surrounding the central circle. The small pyramids 
in the first surrounding band, refer to the various skills involved 


32 


































































































1 



































K 






















































































































in discriminating between word forms. A child must recognize, for 
example, that a given word is cat and not hat. The second surround¬ 
ing band represents the many repetitions necessary to insure in¬ 
stant recognition of sight words. The small circles in the outer 
band represent the additions needed in order that the meanings of 
most words may broaden and expand until each becomes a well-rounded 
concept, and a rich resource in the interpretation of passages in 
subsequent reading activities. Bear in mind that both instant 
recognition and growth in the meanings attached to words must be 
emphasized repeatedly until the child has acquired a rich meaning¬ 
ful vocabulary that is recognized instantly. 

The development of a sight vocabulary, however, is only 
one step essential in promoting efficiency in word perception. The 
reader must acquire the various attitudes, understandings, and 
skills needed to recognize new words independently, quickly, and 
accurately. Circle P and M represent those involved in promoting 
ability to derive pronunciations and meanings respectively. As 
pointed out earlier, this goal is achieved by building upon the 
child's knowledge of word forms, the detailed features of words, 
and the meanings acquired during his mastery of sight words« Always 
as we progress in reading we build upon the foundations which have 
already been established. The pyramids of small circles attached 
to P represent the various attitudes and skills needed in recog¬ 
nizing and pronouncing new words. They relate to meaning clues, 
word form clues, structural analysis, phonetic analysis and, ul¬ 
timately, the use of the dictionary. Those attached to M refer to 
the understandings, attitudes, and skills needed in deriving the 
new meanings of words. They relate to the use of context; the 
pictures and diagrams that accompany the verbal text; the meanings 
of prefixes, suffixes, and roots; and the use of the dictionary 
and other sources of information. 

As a child makes progress at the primer level he masters 
a first round of these skills that enable him to recognize very 
simple words. As his reading needs expand in the second and third 
grades, he acquires additional habits and skills that are associated 
with each of the foregoing aids to word recognition. In a well- 
conceived reading program appropriate training is continued until 
pupils have mastered all attitudes and skills needed to recognize 
independently and accurately the meaning and pronunciation of all 
words in common usage. 

Time will permit emphasis on one related point. In an 
experiment carried on by a student in psychology at the University 
of Chicago an effort was made to find out what are the components 
of good reading ability. Use was made of factor analysis. When 


33 




































>J: 

































the factors that are most important were identified, it was found 
that one of them was ability on the part of a reader to make im¬ 
mediate use of the previous training which he had received in 
identifying words both as to pronunciation and to meanings. It was 
concluded that one of the important steps in training pupils to 
read is to build up systematically the resources in terms of under¬ 
standings and skills that are essential for independence and a high 
level of competency in reading in any content field. One of the 
reasons for many poor readers at the junior and senior high school 
level is that during the forties, due to a wrong concept of how to 
develop a good reader, many boys and girls failed to acquire the 
basic understandings and skills involved in efficient reading. 

The development of a high level of skill in all aspects 
of word perception is of great significance today for two reasons. 
The first is that we face the urgent need of raising the literacy 
level of at least half of our population. The second is that the 
materials of vital importance to today's readers are global or 
technical in character and include, daily, words beyond the scope 
of their oral vocabularies. To equip children and youth with all 
the skills essential in securing meanings and pronunciations re¬ 
quires the cooperative effort of teachers throughout the primary, 
middle, and upper grades, and even the high school and junior 
college. The plea of the public for greater competence in these 
skills has in general been valid. The public's proposal, however, 
for promoting their development has often been unsound. 

DEVELOPING GRASP OF MEANING IN READING 

But far more challenging than the problems just considered 
are those involved in securing a clear understanding of what is 
read. See Diagram 4. They relate to various aspects of meaning 
that are inherent in a passage. The first is concerned with its 
literal or sense meaning and is represented by Section G of the 
diagram. The basic attitudes and skills involved are represented 
by inverted pyramids of crosses below G and are listed in part to 
the right of Section G. They include, first, a strong motive for 
reading; second, a thoughtful reading attitude; third, conscious 
effort to identify the author's purpose and to find out exactly 
what he says, the association of appropriate meanings with the 
words seen, their fusion one after the other into the ideas intended 
by the author, the anticipation of the sequence of ideas, the 
arousal of clear, vivid images of the most important scenes and 
events described, and the recognition of key concepts, the author's 
organization and his stated conclusion. 


34 









































\ 




Because each word in a sentence serves a specific purpose 
in conveying the author's meaning, it must be interpreted with 
care in the light of its total context. One way of bringing this 
out pointedly with a group of boys and girls is to have them read 
first such a sentence as, "I live in a little white house.” Then 
have them read the sentence with first one word and then another 
deleted, thus recognizing the role of each word in conveying the 
total meaning of that sentence. It follows that a reader faces 
the continuous task in recognizing what a passage says, of analyzing, 
selecting, rejecting, and relating as he reads. Following an analy¬ 
sis of the errors made in sentence and paragraph reading, Dr. 
Thorndyke concluded in 1918 that reading involves as much use of 
the higher mental processes as does thinking of supposedly higher 
types. Even in reading very simple material, a good reader makes 
use of practically all the mental processes and skills involved in 
reasoning and problem solving. They are not acquired intuitively 
by most pupils but as a result of carefully planned guidance that 
stimulates deliberate search for a clear grasp of meaning. 

A good reader also recognizes the author's sequence and 
organization of ideas, identifies antecedents and references, notes 
the relative importance attached by the author to the various ideas 
presented, and senses the relation of each to the meaning of the 
passage as a whole. Teachers make use of many kinds of questions 
in directing the pupils' attention to these various aspects of 
meaning. They also use many devices to promote reasonable speed in 
engaging in the various activities described. Such training begins 
as early as the second and third stages of reading development 
which I described this morning, and is very prominent in the fourth. 

But grasping the literal meaning of what is read is not 
enough. The reader makes use also of everything he knows or, indeed, 
of all he can find out that illuminates the meaning of a passage. 
These meanings are called related meanings and are illustrated by 
the cluster of small circles above G. Unfortunately, this back¬ 
ground of related experience is very limited in the case of some 
pupils. It is extended in the case of others. As a result, 
striking differences exist among pupils in ability to secure a full, 
rich grasp of the meanings implied. I was greatly pleased this 
morning during the discussion following the lesson we observed to 
hear emphasis given to the importance of the cultural background 
provided in teaching. Such a background is fundamental and essen¬ 
tial if related meanings are to be grasped by the reader. 

Let me illustrate the difference between literal and re¬ 
lated meanings by two sentences. First, "Columbus discovered 
America in 1492." As you listen to such a sentence you seek 


35 









chiefly to identify the fact related. Second, "Columbus was over¬ 
joyed with the possibilities that lay before him as he learned that 
Queen Isabel had granted his request." Most of the meanings that 
should be aroused when reading that sentence are related meanings. 
Their recognition depends upon the reader’s background of related 
information. He will read little or much meaning into the sentence 
depending upon the extent of the previous experiences he has had. 
Building background, therefore, through oral discussion and verbal 
descriptions, and the use of audio-visual aids and concrete objects 
is fundamental and essential, particularly in the case of boys and 
girls from one culture who are trying to understand another. 

A good reader seeks also to identify implied meanings 
that are inherent in the context, but are not directly stated. 

See the row of inverted pyramids below G. They refer to such ac¬ 
tivities as recognizing the meanings intended but le ft unsaid for 
effect, seeing the implications of the statements made, and judging 
what kind of person a character is from what he says and does. 

The good writer rarely tells the reader whether a character is good 
or bad. This is left for the reader to determine from the activi¬ 
ties in which the character engages, from the attitudes which he 
takes, and from the things he does. Reading between the lines, 
therefore, is one of the essential steps in grasping meaning. If 
boys and girls are going to turn to reading as a source of satis¬ 
faction, pleasure, and inspiration, we must train them gradually 
to identify implied meanings. This involves the development of 
increased sensitivity to implied meanings, imaginative insight in 
identifying them, and ability to check the inferences made in the 
light of the context and the language of the passage read. 

Closely related to implied meanings are what may be 
called derived meanings. See the line of figures below the pyra¬ 
mids. They relate to possible generalizations and conclusions 
that may be drawn from the ideas presented and to future events 
that may be predicted from them. These meanings can be acquired 
only through conscious effort to find them, a clear grasp of the 
literal and implied meanings, insightful judgments, and careful 
checking in the light of pertinent evidence. In this connection a 
great deal of group instruction is needed in which boys and girls 
can draw conclusions or make valid generalizations. Through the 
pooling of judgments, a group of pupils can check their findings 
one against the other. They can also reread the material and se¬ 
lect the evidence that supports the right conclusion. 

As implied by the foregoing discussion, increasing 
competence in understanding what is read requires steady growth in 
ability to read the lines, to read between the lines, and to read 


36 























































































































(i 















beyond the lines. The widespread difficulty faced today by both 
children and adults in interpreting what they read emphasizes the 
urgent need of vigorous effort throughout the grades and high 
school to develop the various types of understandings, attitudes, 
and skills that have been emphasized. According to Thorndyke, 
failure to secure a clear grasp of meaning marks a tragic breakdown 
in reading efficiency. The effort is often made to avoid this 
difficulty by using only very simple reading materials. This is an 
emergency measure, as is the hiring the teachers of limited prepara¬ 
tion. If we are to prepare children and adults to understand and 
adjust to today's world, and to help create a better one, it is 
imperative that we seek persistently and vigorously to promote 
greater competence in securing a clear, accurate, and adequate 
grasp of all the aspects of meaning to which I have referred. 

DEVELOPING THOUGHTFUL REACTION IN READING 

As a good reader perceives words and grasps meanings, he 
reacts thoughtfully to what he reads. (See Diagram 5) He wants 
to know if the facts presented are accurate, if the ideas presented 
are sound, and if he can use them to advantage as guides in future 
thinking and acting. The crosses in the lower section of the dia¬ 
gram suggest the almost unlimited number of occasions for thoughtful, 
critical reading that arise daily in both child and adult life. 

A > first requisite of such reading is an attitude of inquiry con¬ 
cerning the soundness, quality, and worth of the ideas read. It is 
represented by the question marks in the second section of the dia¬ 
gram and is developed from the earliest grades on as challenging 
problems appropriate to the age group taught are presented. For 
example, did Mary do the right thing in this story by taking her 
brother's place in the ball game? Is the proposal made in this 
editorial for preventing a vacancy in the presidency on the death 
-bf the vice president a sound one? The goal sought is not an atti¬ 
tude of disagreement for its own sake, but a spirit of inquiry which 
seeks sound evaluations and aids the reader in becoming independent 
and self-reliant in the interpretation of what he reads. 

As Indian boys and girls participate, in time, in decid¬ 
ing community and national policies, it is very important that they 
learn to read thoughtfully and to react critically to what they 
read. A second requisite is an adequate body of experience, 
known facts, established principles, and personal standards of judg¬ 
ment that can be used in making sound evaluations. These resources 
are represented by the small circles in the third level of the 
diagram and are acquired throughout the school years and later life 
of the readers. Experience shows that pupils differ in the rate at 
which these resources are acquired. Efficient teachers seek daily 


37 










to find out if pupils have acquired an adequate background of facts 
or standards of judgment to make rational judgments or evaluations 
of the things they are reading. And just as we must often build a 
background for understanding the sense meaning of the story, so we 
must help pupils acquire the information and standards needed in 
making sound judgments. For example, we may ask them, "On what 
basis are you going to reach a decision in this case? What stand¬ 
ards will you use in deciding whether the story character did 
right or wrong?" Many boys and girls come to school with precon¬ 
ceptions gained from their environment that are wholely inadequate 
in making decisions as they grow up. One of the functions of good 
teaching is to help boys and girls become conscious of their stand¬ 
ards of judgment and to modify them if necessary. The junior high 
school period is a particularly important one in this connection 
because of the very nature of the child's stage of development. 

A third requisite is ability on the part of the reader 
to make sound judgments. This calls first for a wise selection of 
the facts or standards needed in making specific evaluations. Of 
primary importance in doing so are clear thinking, the weighing of 
values, and careful checking of the validity of the conclusions 
reached. The various mental processes involved in this aspect of 
critical reading are represented by the triangles in the fourth 
section of the diagram. As decisions are made (see the top row of 
figures), they are accompanied by such emotional responses as will 
lead the reader to accept and be guided by that which is sound and 
meritorious, and to reject or disapprove that which is untrue or of 
questionable value. These reactions are represented by lines of 
varying length in the upper section of the diagram. They are vital 
factors not only in determining the reader's present attitude and 
behavior, but the nature of his interpretation in later reading 
activities. 

This aspect of the reading act I think was dramatically 
brought out by Nehru of India when he was here recently and engaged 
in a television interview. The interviewers were asking him questions 
about conditions in India. Following one of his responses, they 
said, "We are well acquainted with those facts." "Yes," said Nehru, 
"you have an intellectual understanding of them but you do not have 
an emotional apprehension of their meaning and significance in 
Indian life." Growth on the part of the reader in recognizing the 
meaning and significance of what he reads in this broader sense is 
one of the major objectives in teaching reading. 


38 

















































































































INTEGRATION OF NEW IDEAS WITH PAST EXPERIENCES 


The fourth and final aspect of reading as here discussed 
is the fusion or integration of the new ideas apprehended with 
previous experiences. (See Diagram 6). Its value lies in the 
fact that it aids significantly in correcting wrong impressions and 
in promoting the development of new understandings, broader inter¬ 
ests, rational attitudes, and improved patterns of thinking and 
behaving. It is the heart of the learning act in reading and is 
indispensable if reading is to make its greatest contribution to 
personal development and social progress <> 

The crosses in the upper half of the central circle in 
the diagram represent the new ideas read and the circles in the 
lower half represent the reader's fund of related experiences. 

The lines between the two halves suggest possible relationship 
between the two. If integration and learning are to occur effec¬ 
tively, the reader must develop an inquiring attitude which makes 
him alert at all times to possible relationships and implications 
of the ideas read. This is represented by the question marks in 
the first band surrounding the inner circle. The development of 
such an attitude can be stimulated by the thoughtful teacher who 
daily asks such questions as the following: "In what way does the 
story or account just read change your ideas about life in Eskimo 
land?" "What new insight did you gain from the reading assignment 
today concerning the problems involved in going to the moon?" 

"What light does this article shed on the question, 'Did Egypt have 
the right to seize the Suez Canal?'" As facts relating to these 
issues are recognized, they mdst be construed, evaluated, and in¬ 
terpreted in the light of all the reader knows. Oftentimes it is 
essential on the part of even good readers to stop reading and go 
to an encyclopedia, or to some other source to secure the informa¬ 
tion needed before he can proceed. 

Various mental processes such as analysis, selection, 
comparison, and judgment are involved. They are represented by 
the figures in the band beyond the question marks. The new under¬ 
standings, attitudes and interests, and the solutions to problems 
that are derived, are represented by the asterisk-like figures 
outside the circle. Leading from them are lines which indicate 
that the insights and rational attitudes acquired are new mental 
resources that may serve as guides in directing further thinking 
and action and in interpreting what is read on future occasions. 


39 





























































































































































































































































UNDERSTANDINGS, ATTITUDES, AND SKILLS IN EFFECTIVE READING 


Diagram 7 brings together the facts presented earlier to 
represent many of the understandings, attitudes, and skills in¬ 
volved in word perception, grasp of meaning, thoughtful reaction, 
and integration. As reading programs are now organized, one of the 
major aims of basal instruction in reading is to develop the atti¬ 
tudes and skills that are common to the various activities in which 
children and youth do and should engage. Experience shows that 
this goal can be achieved best through a carefully planned sequen- 
cial program from the kindergarten to college which recognizes the 
stages of development and progress that I pointed out this morning. 

The small figures in the area at the top of the diagram 
represent the various mental resources used in efficient reading. 
They include not only the reading attitudes and skills referred to 
earlier but in addition the reader's background of experiences, his 
interests and preconceptions, and all the mental processes that 
characterize clear thinking, sound reasoning, and problem solving. 
These are resources on which the reader draws at every step in the 
reading act. They include the reader's background of information, 
his learned experiences in school, his habits and skills of word 
perception, his ability to grasp meaning, and so forth. The ef¬ 
ficiency with which he performs any given act of reading depends 
upon the adequacy of this background. It is the product of all of 
the informal and planned experiences that children acquire both in 
and out of school from infancy on. The arrows that point up and 
down in the diagram below the reservoirs of mental resources em¬ 
phasize the fact that the reader at every step in reading depends 
upon the understandings, attitudes, and skills previously acquired 
and, in turn, contributes to their further extension and refine¬ 
ment . 


As implied earlier, many of the difficulties which readers 
encounter today are due primarily to an inadequate background of 
ideas rather than the lack of specific skills. For example, chil¬ 
dren who are reared in one cultural group are often unable to under¬ 
stand and interpret stories about children of other groups or lands. 
The content teacher who complains that his pupils cannot read may 
be unconsciously admitting that he has failed to develop the es¬ 
sential concepts and understandings in his field that are essential 
to the interpretation of the next lesson in the material which he 
has assigned. It follows that the development of a good reader 
goes far beyond the task of developing mr e attitudes and skills. 

It consists also in the gradual enrichment of the reader's experi¬ 
ences, in the development of compelling interests in reading, in 
cultivating an open mind and an inquiring attitude, and in 


40 































































































































































































































































stimulating clear thinking and sound judgment. Each school activity 
is responsible, therefore, for adding to the child's intellectual 
resources upon which he can draw in the varied reading activities 
in which he will later engage. 

Diagram 8 illustrates additional facts. You see in the 
background the four dimensions of the reading act that were pre¬ 
sented earlier. The fan-like figures extending out in all direc¬ 
tions illustrate two additional points. First, they refer to dif¬ 
ferent purposes of reading to which I have made little mention thus 
far. Reading for different purposes relies first of all upon the 
basic training received in word perception, grasp of meaning, 
thoughtful reaction, and integration. It makes use also of spe¬ 
cific habits and skills that are essential in achieving particular 
purposes. As a child reads for one purpose after another, he grows 
in capacity to select and use those understandings and skills that 
enable him to do first one task and then another. 

The parts of the diagram that extend out represent also 
the contributions which the various content fields make in reading. 
The teachers of these subjects rely first of all upon the basic 
training given during the reading period in word perception, grasp 
of meaning, thoughtful reaction, and integration. Building upon 
this foundation the teacher of a given subject promotes further 
growth, extends the abilities and skills needed in achieving the 
purposes of reading in that field. As a result pupils grow in 
competence in reading. 


CONCLUDING STATEMENTS 

Our time is at an end and I will bring the formal part of 
this discussion to a close. What I have presented goes far beyond 
what we are achieving in many of our classrooms today. It sets 
goals which we hope can be achieved with the Indian boys and girls 
under your instruction. With a clear understanding in mind of the 
ends towards which we are working, we can strive diligently to build 
the attitudes and skills involved in efficient reading. Through 
wide reading these boys and girls can then expand and enrich their 
experiences and grow in ability to study the personal and social 
problems that they face. This it seems to me is the challenge which 
we face today. What I have presented applies to the work of every 
teacher who participates in the challenging task of promoting 
growth in and through reading among Indian children and adults. 


41 

























































































































































































V 


THE NATURE OF READING AND THE BASIC ATTITUDES AND SKILLS INVOLVED 



Diagram 1 


The eight diagrams cannot be reproduced without Dr. Gray's permission 


42 












A BIRD'S EYE VIEW OF THE READING ACT 


Background of 
Child - previous 
ideas and experiences 


X X X x 
X X X X. 
XX X X 
XX X X 


Meaning 






J 


Pronunciation 

Associations 


Emotional Response - as 
one grasps meaning 


I II III IV 

Word Perception Grasp of Meaning Thoughtful Reaction Integration 


Diagram 2 


43 









i. *. 






















































Meaning 


Context Clues 



Use of Dictionary 
finding words 
selecting right 
meanings 


Sight Vocabulary 

meaning associations 
visual discrimination 
instantaneous 
recognition 
enrichment of 
meanings 


Structural Analysis 


Phonetic Analysis 


Use of Dictionary 


WORD PERCEPTION 


Diagram 3 


44 













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o o00 °o 
0°co o °0 
o° „ u o 
o° Q °o 
0 00 0 


OCo 

0 

0 

0 

0 


Related Meanings 

all the reader knows 
that illuminate the 
meaning of the passage 



Literal Meanings 

thoughtful attitude 
demand for meaning 
fusion of meanings 
analyzing 
selecting 
rejecting 
relating 

recognition of sequence 
organization 
antecedents 
referents 

relative importance of 
ideas 

reasonable speed 



Implied Meanings 

sensitivity to them 
imaginative insight 
checking references 


-sie Derived Meanings 

attitude of inquiry 
clear grasp of meaning 
insightful judgments 
checking on tentative 
conclusions 


GRASP OF MEANING 


Diagram 4 


45 














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X x 


X 


0 0 0 o o O 

0 o o 0 o O o 



e O O^oo ficoCOc 

! °oOoc>0Cc-ooe 

b ooopqqqcsc'OO 


????????????? 


S*X XX X X XXXXXXXXy 

^xxx x xxxxxxx 
X x xxxxxx y 
' xxxx; 


6. Emotional Responses 

5. Conclusions Reached 

4. Skills Needed in Making 
Evaluations 

3. Standards of Judgment 

2. Inquiring Attitude 
soundness 
value 

1. Ideas Read 


THOUGHTFUL REACTION 


Diagram 5 


46 
















I 







































































































1. Ideas Read 


2. Previous Experience 



Relationships 

An Attitude of Inquiry 

Mental Processes 
analysis 
comparison 
judgment 

rigorous checking 
Results 

revised understandings 
new insights 
broader interests 
rational attitudes 
improved thought and 
behavior patterns 


INTEGRATION 


Diagram 6 


47 













I 


II 


III 


IV 


Word Perception Grasp of Meaning Thoughtful Reaction Integration 


Diagram 7 


48 

























Diagram 8 


49 














VI 


THE ROLE OF THE AREA DIRECTOR OF SCHOOLS IN THE READING PROGRAM 

Panel Discussion 

Chairman - Robert J. Murray 
Summary - Martin N. B. Holm 


Mrs. Hildegard Thompson, Chief Branch of Education, 
requested the Area Director of Schools to suggest "action steps" to 
be taken in implementing an improved reading program in Bureau 
Schools. She felt that while it would take ten or more years to 
accomplish these steps, it was most essential that we begin immedi¬ 
ately to give priority attention to several of the action steps. 

In summarizing the discussion that took place, the following points 
having been made, it was the opinion of the group that it was 
essential that implementation of all the action steps in varying 
degree be started as soon as possible. 

Action Step No. 1 - Recognize the need for an improved reading 
program in Bureau Schools and give priority action to 
the implementation of such a program. 

The Area Director of School's support of the line officer s 
program is most essential and mandatory. The entire staff must get 
"fired up about reading". Positive line officer leadership will 
create the favorable climate which must permeate the entire staff 
organization in order that this program be carried out. 

The implementation and carrying out of the program to 
improve reading is the line and staff officer's responsibility. 

Action Step No. 2 - Recruit teachers who are qualified and trained 
in elementary education including reading methods and 
techniques. 

Should Civil Service announcement specifically require 
college courses in reading methods and techniques? 

Should we insist on selective certification, i.e., primary, 
middle grades and upper grades? 

It was suggested that there be greater nation-wide Civil 
Service recruitment of teachers and that Bureau of Indian Affairs 
Areas having little need for teachers assist those who have great 
need. 


50 














































It was suggested that the probational period be extended 
from one to three years. A longer period would permit educational 
leave and specific course preparation for teachers of good potential. 

Action Step No. 3 - Evaluate the college training program of our 
teachers and encourage the taking of college courses to 
meet deficiencies in recency of training or lack of 
training in reading methods and techniques. 

Many teachers can take educational leave during summer 

months. 


Extension courses, one evening a week, are possible at 
many Bureau locations when there are enough people who will take 
the courses. 

It was felt that perhaps we should recommend the colleges 
that have good offerings in reading methods and techniques. 

Action Step No. 4 - Continue to emphasize in-service training in 

reading - through: 

School or area workshops on reading methods and 
techniques. 

Remedial work with teachers that cannot be done anywhere 
else, i.e., college courses, etc. 

Work with entire staff during the school year including 
staff teaching content subjects. 

Explore creation of special reading programs in schools. 

Teach reading methods and techniques during orientation 
periods for new teachers. 

Emphasize through in-service training, the importance of 
systematic teaching of reading in all grades, first through the 
twelfth. 


Service-wide workshop for school superintendents, principals 
and department heads on reading programs. 

Area-wide workshop for teachers on reading methods and 
techniques, this is to include methods and techniques for high 
school teachers including shop and home economics. 


51 










Through workshops and other media investigate suitable 
materials for use in teaching reading, material on how to use 
manuals, etc. 

Action Step No. 5 - Examine the total budget and determine if there 
is need for equalization of funds between areas of 
expenditure. 

Is greater utilization of funds possible through better 
procurement? 

Are some phases of a school program overly costly and can 
readjustment be made resulting in more funds for teaching aids and 
materials, i.e., specifically reading? Can we make dollars more 
productive? 

Is there merit in the Central Office pooling of funds, 
walk into a place, do a job and then walk out? 

Action Step No. 6 - Approach the total reading program on an 
acculturation basis. 

Provide a broader front, through experiences that will 
make reading more meaningful. This can be called enrichment. 

Use other members of the school staff, such as 
dormitory personnel, to achieve this. New furniture, activities, 
experiences can be used to make reading more meaningful. 


52 













* 









* 


♦ 










VII 


IMPROVING THE READING PROGRAM IN BUREAU SCHOOLS 
Discussion by Educational Specialists 


Discussion centered around the need for special attention 
to the teaching of communication skills in Bureau schools. It was 
recognized that systematic teaching of reading must begin in the 
first grade and continue through the twelfth. Every teacher must 
know how to teach reading and that the special reading skills needed 
in the content fields can only be taught by the teachers of the con¬ 
tent fields. 

Reports from members of the group showed that most 
administrators and teachers are aware of the problem and are seeking 
help to improve the reading program. Different kinds of in-service 
training programs were discussed. Successful training programs 
depend on (1) readiness of teachers to accept special training and 
(2) enthusiasm and backing of the school administrators. 

In the discussion of how to present the reading problem 
to a group. Miss Runyan showed a chart of reading test scores from 
one school. It showed the median score for each grade, how many 
students in each grade were reading above grade level, how many at 
grade level, and how many below grade level. Not only must 
educational specialists make all the school personnel aware of the 
problem, but they must also help develop reading programs. 

Special reading programs in some Bureau schools are: 

1. Cutting across grade lines in grouping for reading 
instruction. 

2. Using two periods for English in high school, one in 
which reading skills are taught. 

3. Having a reading period in high school in which every 
teacher gives instruction in reading. 

The testing programs as used in several Areas were 
discussed. The group recommends that each Area have a testing 
program and that the test results be used as a teaching tool . 

Two points brought out during the discussion were: 

1. Tests should be administered by one person or by a 
team of testers. 

2. Hand scoring by the homeroom teacher is important 
for it provides her with a knowledge of the needs of her children. 


53 





VIII 


BACKGROUND OF THE ADULT EDUCATION PROGRAM 
Madison Coombs 


Much against my natural inclination and usual habit, I am 
asking your permission to read what I have to say. Our time with 
Dr. Gray is very limited and we have a great deal of ground to cover. 
Furthermore I am anxious that our problem on adult education be 
defined as accurately and as completely as time will permit. 

It seems to me that it would be a mistake to approach a 
discussion of the Bureau 1 s Adult Education program and the place of 
reading in it completely out of context with the total adult 
education experience throughout the United States. If there are 
points of similarity we need to know them and if there are gaps in 
the total experience of the nation we need to know that. At any 
rate I am not content merely to assume that no one else's problems 
or programs have relevance to our own. 

The idea of "continuing" education or "learning as a 
lifelong process" is one of the most rapidly developing concepts in 
education today. We are coming to realize more fully as time goes on 
that human beings are dynamic organisms from birth to death and that 
learning does not stop at some arbitrarily set point in the life 
span. This being true, we as teachers are not content to let 
learning for adults be wholly incidental; we wish to organize and 
structure and facilitate the learning process, at least to some 
extent. As a result, millions of American adults today (no one 
really knows how many millions) faced on the one hand with increased 
leisure time and on the other with a world which every year is 
becoming more complex, are engaging in more or less formal learning 
pursuits long after the traditional school years have ended. 

The variety of learning activities going on under the 
spreading canopy of adult education defies description. There are, 
of course, reasons for this. Foremost is the fact that the interests 
and needs of adult people are almost infinitely varied. Coupled with 
this is the fact that adult participation is almost always purely 
voluntary and the adults themselves call the tune as to what they 
want to learn. Then too, only a small part of adult education is 
being carried on under the authority of our public school system. 
Churches, libraries, colleges and universities, federal and state 
bureaus, private foundations and associations, and myriad other 
organizations all get into the act. Besides much of it is propa¬ 
ganda and not really education at all. This phenomenon does not 
worry me very much and I mention it only in passing. 


54 


















































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What does worry me is the fact that the adults in America 
who need education most desperately are not getting much of it. 

The United States Bureau of the Census has given us a cruel and 
startling figure. According to them, in 1950 there were nearly 
ten million adult men and women in America who could not read and 
write well enough to meet the ordinary minimum demands of daily 
living. T hey were classified as functionall illiterate. Three 
million of these adults were foreign born but the other seven 
million were native born American citizens. What is being done 
educationally for these ten million uneducated adult Americans who 
are limping through life? The answer is "not very much” and I 
think I know whereof I speak for we have been at some pains for a 
couple of years now to find out. Not very many of the ten million 
functionally illiterate are among the millions of American adults 
who are participating in adult education programs. This is 
especially true of the rural areas. I wish time permitted me to tell 
you in some detail of several visits I made recently in the South. 
Perhaps sometime I can. At this time, may I say only that in 
Miami, Florida; Atlanta, Georgia; and Dallas, Texas, the help being 
brought to adults on the lowest rung of the educational ladder is 
negligible. In rural Carroll County, Georgia, there is a program 
going on which warms one's heart because it is an imaginative 
sample of what could be done in hundreds of counties in America. 

But even it is inadequate to the need and it is noteworthy largely 
because it stands out like a green oasis in the desert of neglect 
of the ten million. 

I do not mean this to sound like too harsh an indictment. 

I think the neglect is largely a result of unawareness and not of 
callous indifference. There is no budget. Most communities in 
America are straining - or feel they are - to educate the increasing 
numbers of children for whom we are responsible. Much of adult 
education pays its own way through fees or is supported by grants 
or fund sources other than taxation. But the "ten million" remain 
a drag on our economy and society and, worst of all, are largely 
unfulfilled as human individuals. Nor do I mean to suggest that 
the ten million are clamoring for help. They are not. If they 
were they would be getting more attention. It is characteristic 
of such people that they are inarticulate, unmotivated, and 
ineffective. But this does not keep them from being miserable. 

Against this background of adult education - nation-wide - 
which I have tried to describe briefly, what of the Indian adult? 

For nearly three years now the Bureau has been grappling with this 
problem through a special reservation program. Nor should we 
overlook the fact that during most of its past the Bureau has sought 


55 




























































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to help adults educationally in one way or another. It seems to 
me that Indian people are not so different from other people that 
much of what I have said in the first part of this talk applies to 
them also. They are individuals. As such, they represent a wide 
range of abilities and interests. They have most of the same 
responsibilities and concerns as other adults. However, taken as 
a group, there can be little doubt that they are educationally 
at a disadvantage when compared with the general population. We 
know that for the general population of adults in the nation the 
average number of years of schooling is ten. Our best estimate is 
that for Indian adults it is about five. This represents a 
terrible handicap; and it is likely to get worse instead of better 
unless we are able to do something about it. 

When we speak of averages we must realize that there are 
always as many people below an average as above it. We must not 
let the number five, low as it is, obscure the fact that thousands 
of Indian adults are lower than that in their educational achieve¬ 
ment - many of them at the zero level - nonreaders, nonwriters and 
non-English speaking. The disadvantage, of course, does not end 
with lack of the basic skills. Many Indian adults are handicapped 
by lack of experience in the dominant culture. They are not 
knowledgeable about our economic, social, and civic processes and 
institutions. Being uninformed, they often are in no position to 
make sound judgments about matters affecting their own welfare and 
happiness. As we discuss the problem of reading during this meeting, 
I think it will become clear that this low educational level of 
parents has a tremendous adverse effect upon the learning of 
children. Conversely to the extent that we are able to lift the 
educational level of parents and thus provide a climate in the home 
more favorable to learning, we will greatly facilitate our school 
programs. 


As of June 30 of this year, the Bureau's reservation 
program of adult education had been extended to 75 communities in 
24 jurisdictions and 9 administrative are«s. Manifestly such a 
widespread program, ranging geographically from the Seminole of 
southern Florida to the native villages of Alaska, will present 
many differences. Not only do the learning interests and needs of 
adults differ as between individuals and communities, but differing 
philosophies and points of view of our own Bureau workers must be 
accommodated and reconciled. We are even now concerned with a 
curriculum problem in adult education - with providing both substance 
and form to a body of learning content and with defining more 
precisely the role of the adult educator. But I do not think this 
meeting is the time or place to go into that, as such. 


56 









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For this meeting, we may agree, I think, that a large 
proportion of Indian adults on reservations stand in great need, 
among other things, of improved communication skills. How can we 
best motivate them to attempt an improvement of these skills? How 
can we help and encourage them to move from limited beginnings to 
successively higher levels of competence in these skills? And what 
are the best methods, techniques, procedures, and materials for 
teaching them at whatever level they may be? Surely I do not need 
to belabor the obvious by pointing out at great length how important 
the possession of the communication skills are today to all adults, 
regardless of their race, geographical location, occupation, or 
station in life. 

As I said earlier, American education has not had much 
experience in working with adults at the lowest educational levels. 
As a result, I think we may be somewhat handicapped in not having a 
large body of professional knowledge on which to draw. That is why 
we seek your help eagerly, Dr. Gray. We know we have a man-sized 
job to do. 


Following me, two men will tell you about two programs 
for which they, respectively, have had responsibility. I do not 
want to steal their thunder and so I will say only that these 
programs have been quite different from each other and will present 
some interesting contrasts. But then their Indian people have been 
different in the two programs, too. 


57 


















































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IX 


ADULT EDUCATION AT THE SEMINOLE AGENCY 
William D. Boehmer 


The word Seminole has been interpreted to mean runaway 
or wild people. These people came to Florida from Georgia. The 
nucleus of the tribe is said to have been a band of Oconee Indians. 
They joined with other bands of Indians, notably the Mikasuki and 
the Creeks, because of pressures that were brought to bear upon 
them by their Indian neighbors as well as white settlers in the 
State. They had to move south. About two hundred years ago, they 
settled in north Florida. They had not been there very long until 
the country began to be settled and they had to move again. More 
pressures were brought to bear upon them and the policy of the 
Federal Government was to move them from their home to reservations 
west of the Mississippi River. 

In north Florida the Seminoles had followed an economy of 
cattle raising, farming, hunting, and fishing. About 3,000 were 
removed from Florida to the West, but a small band resisted removal 
and fought the armies of the United States to a standstill. It is 
said that this is the only war that the United States Armies never 
won - the war with the Seminole Indians. At the end of this war, 
or these many wars, there were perhaps not over two or three 
hundred of these people left in the State of Florida and by the 
middle of last century they had been pushed south into the swamps 
and the everglades of the State. There they hid out and finally 
the soldiers just gave up looking for them. For many years there 
was a price on their heads, so much for a man, so much for a child, 
so much for a woman; I do not recall the exact figures. With this 
sort of a background, there is a natural distrust among the Seminole 
for government, as such, and for non-Indian people. 

At the present time, this small band of Seminole has 
increased in numbers until there are about 1,000 in the State. 

For many years in their homeland in the swamps and the everglades, 
they followed a hunting and fishing economy. But here again, the 
majority race crowded in upon them and the hunting and fishing is 
now gone and we find most of the Seminole making their living in 
the labor economy. Most of them, because of their lack of education, 
had to find work on farms and ranches - jobs which they can hold and 
do well - without having any education, or very little education. 

Most all of the Seminoles still live in thatched-roof 
shelters called chickees. They are pretty good homes for tropical 
country, but today we find Seminoles wanting houses and under their 


58 







new tribal organization they are planning to borrow money and build 
houses. So if you want to see Seminoles living in chickees, it would 
be well to come to Florida within the next few years. Otherwise they 
may be living in concrete block stucco bungalows. 

For many years their transportation over the state was in 
dugout canoes or in oxcarts; and that has not been very long ago, 
twenty-five years probably. Today in driving along the Tamiami Trail 
you may see an Indian family poling their way along the Tamiami Canal 
bound from one camp to another or to the village to buy some of their 
subsistence. But that is an unusual sight. Practically every Seminole 
family of today has a car. Some of them have two cars. Their cars 
are often better than some of the folks who work with them. 

As long ago as 1872, attempts were made to establish schools 
for the Seminoles, but they resisted these efforts. The parents, did 
not want their children to go to school. The first Indian who went 
to school was Conapache, sometimes called Billy Cornpatch. He went 
over to Fort Myers and lived with a white family and gained some 
education. It is said that his motivation for going to school was 
the Indian princess, Mansesawe, who had seen a gallant soldier. 

She wanted Billy Cornpatch to look like the soldier. With that 
motivation he decided he would go to school to see if he could not 
gain some of that gallantry that was shown by this soldier who had 
been seen traveling through the country. 

In 1926, a school was opened on the Dania Reservation 
which is near Miami. It was not in operation very long because of 
opposition by the tribal leaders. I have in my files a letter 
from a superintendent at that time telling about some of the 
difficulties, and how the tribal leaders were even finally ordered 
off the reservation because they interfered with this school. My 
own personal contact with these people and with their education 
came in 1938 when the Indian people of Florida asked for a school. 

One was established on the Brighton Reservation which is in the 
central part of Florida near Lake Okeechobee. This school operated 
successfully for about 16 years, until 1954 when it was closed in 
line with the Federal policy of putting the Seminole children, 
along with other Indian children, into public schools. Today the 
Bureau still operates one Indian day school on the Big Cypress 
Reservation, a very isolated community about fifty miles from the 
nearest town. 

Twenty years ago the Seminole people did not know if they 
wanted education or not. A few of them did, but most of them were 
not sure of it. In 1938 there were 13 Seminole children attending 


59 


































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school, and this year the total enrollment of Seminole children in 
all schools is 267. One small group who lives along the Tamiami 
Trail still resists any attempts to enroll the children in school. 

All during the years, the teachers of the Indian schools 
have been interested in adult education. They had classes at night 
for the people who wanted to come and used'the materials that were 
available. They taught with the primer and the readers that we used 
in the day school. People came and they learned to read about Dick 
and Jane, and about the little rabbit that would "lun, lun, lun." 

In 1954 Commissioner Emmons came to Florida to confer with 
the Seminole people at the time the termination bills were prominent. 
Of course, the Seminole people, like a lot of the other Indians, did 
not want to be terminated. The things that the people said to the 
Commissioner were, "We don't have any education - we don't know how 
to handle our affairs. We would like to have 25 years more of 
Federal supervision in which to prepare ourselves for taking care of 
our own business." The Commissioner did not say, "I'll give you 25 
years;" he said, "Let's see how long it takes. Maybe it won't take 
that long." Then he asked the people, "Would you like to go to 
school? Would you like to learn to read and write?" The response 
was very gratifying and was quite extensive among the people of the 
three Indian reservations. So in 1956 the program was begun on the 
Seminole Reservations. 

At that time the Seminole Agency operated under the 
Muskogee Area Office and the recruitment of teachers was taken care 
of by that office. I want to say that we have been very fortunate 
with teachers. In the three areas or three reservations where we 
have adult education programs we have had, over these past two years, 
four teachers. We have not had any great turnover. The teachers 
selected had had no former experience with adult education. Perhaps, 
as one or two of them were day school teachers, they had some 
experience teaching adults along with their day school program. The 
three reservations in Florida are scattered widely over the southern 
part of the State. My headquarters are on the Brighton Reservation 
on Lake Okeechobee and it is 75-miles to Big Cypress. It is 120 miles 
to the Dania Reservation. You see we are widely separated. 

Before the program actually got under way, Mrs. Ann Clark 
came to find out what the people were interested in - what they 
wanted to learn - so that some materials could be prepared for them. 

We did not want to teach them "Dick and Jane." We wanted them to 
have some materials that were developed on an adult interest level. 

In asking the people what they wanted to learn, what they wanted to 
know, we found that some of them wanted to learn to write their 


60 







names; others wanted to know how to handle their money better, how 
to budget the money that they had in order to make it come out even 
before the next pay check came around. Of course, a lot of them 
did not know what they wanted. Out of this talking with the people 
we came up with some ideas and Mrs. Clark developed what is called 
the ten basic Seminole books. Other books were developed because 
some of us workers with Seminole people decided that these were 
things that the people should know. If they did not express the 
need, we knew they needed them anyway. The land operations officer 
wanted something to promote his program which at that time really 
was not going very well, and Mrs. Clark with his help developed a 
book called Better Land Makes Better People . I was interested in 
getting the parents to understand some of the problems that their 
children, and they as parents, were going to meet because the 
children were going to public schools. So we developed the book 
Your Child Is In Public School . Mrs. Boehmer has, for many years, 
been in the arts and crafts work with the Seminole people and she 
wanted to get across to the Seminole women how they could improve 
their crafts, and how they could sell them for more money. So a 
craft book was developed. 

A young couple from the west came to the Big Cypress 
Reservation and built a house using a chickee roof or thatched roof 
and a concrete floor. They boarded it up and made a very nice little 
home out of it. This seemed to be an opportunity to get across to 
the Seminole people a better kind of house than an open chickee. 

And so a book on The Good Home was developed. These first ten basic 
books were developed scientifically. If you do not know how that is 
done, I am sure Mrs. Clark can explain it. I would not even attempt 
to do it although I feel that I understand something about it. The 
other books mentioned were developed with the aid of the people from 
the reservation. They did not follow the ten basic books in that 
they did not use a controlled vocabulary and when the teachers began 
to teach them, they found that they had quite a lot of difficulty. 

The material was too hard for the learners. This problem was 
referred to Mrs. Clark and when she again visited us, something over 
a year ago, we went back and started with the ten basic books. From 
the vocabulary developed in these books, we went on with the writing 
of several other short booklets. Teaching of these has been much 
more satisfactory. It seems to point up to us that we need to 
develop our materials in a progressive manner, going from *hat they 
have already learned to more difficult tasks. 

I would like to give you a few figures about the response 
of the Seminole people to the program. Now statistics are not 
interesting perhaps, and sometimes they are misleading. It is sort 


61 












































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of like a story that I saw in the Miami Herald a couple of days ago. 
This fellow said, "There are 160 million people in the United States 
and 62 million of them are over 62 years of age, so that leaves 
98 million to do the work. Now 54 million of these people are under 
the age of 21, so that leaves 44 million to do all the work. Twenty- 
one million of them are Government employees and 10 million are in 
the armed services so that leaves 13 million to do all the work. Now 
if we deduct 12 million 800 thousand housewives and 126 thousand 
people who are in hospitals and sanitariums, there are 64 thousand 
people left to do all the work. Fifty-two thousand of these are 
derelicts and that leaves 12 thousand to do all the work. Of these, 
11,998 are in jail or the penitentiary, so that just leaves you and 
me to do all the work. And brother, am I getting tired of carrying 
the whole load by myself." The total adult population on the three 
reservations - people between the ages of 18 and 60 - is 232. Since 
this program began in April of 1956, 171 of these people have 
participated in the program. I mean they have directly participated 
in class. It does not mean that they came to watch a picture show, 
or some other activity that might have been in connection with the 
adult program. And at the present time, there are 39 active 
participants. 

Now, who are these people? What do they want to leajrn? 

They have asked for a wide range of subjects. Some want to learn 
how to write their name. One person came to the teacher one day 
and said, "I want a course in calculus." There is no typical learner. 
Each one of them is an individual. There is Mary Tiger, a very timid, 
withdrawn person. The teacher can hardly hear what she says when 
she reads or speaks. One of Mary's ambitions was to learn how to 
read the Bible. Of course, she did not understand what a task she 
was setting for herself. There is Frances Dehass. Frances is 
married to a non-Indian who has his own business. During the day 
when he is out at work, people call on the telephone to place orders. 
Frances could not write. She could not take down the orders. She 
would keep them in her head because she understood English. But 
after she had been going to classes for awhile, she beamed one night 
as she said to the teacher, "Today somebody called on the telephone, 

I wrote down what he wanted. I gave the paper to my husband and 
I didn't have to tell it to him." She had reached one of her goals. 
Laura May Oseola had had some previous schooling, but she wanted to 
learn more and she came and studied typing. When the Seminole Tribe 
was organized many months ago, Laura May was chosen as Secretary- 
Treasurer of the Seminole Tribe. Annie Oseola is a girl about 19 
years old and very attractive, but we never could get her to go to 
school. We tried for years to get her to go to one of the boarding 
schools in the west, but no, she never would go. Now she comes 
to adult classes faithfully. I have with me two soundscriber 


62 



































































































































































. 
































































records of Annie's reading, the first in September of 1956, and 
one made more recently. She is now reading by phrases, groups of 
words, with no more of that halting expression. What Annie wants to 
know or how far she wants to go, we do not know. Most of the other 
young adults of her age have had some education. Perhaps she wants 
to catch up with them. 

The teachers, of course, evaluate their program each day 
to see how well the people are getting along. They ask people on 
the outside how the Seminoles are doing and the response is that 
they have noticed quite a big difference, especially in those who 
have taken advantage of the Seminole adult program. 

Why don't more of them participate in the program? Many 
of them move about from place to place. They come awhile and then 
they are gone. Others work hard all day and when night comes, they 
say they are too tired. Many of them have too many other interests. 
They have television. The other day a young couple came to class 
and the teacher said he was glad to see them, that he hadn't seer, 
them for a long time. They said their television was out of order 
so they thought they'd just as well come to night school. Seminole 
people have many church activities. Now that they have a tribe 
organization, there are more meetings than you would think there was 
time for. Some of them who were participating in the program have 
dropped out perhaps on this account. Some, perhaps, expected to get 
spectacular results from going to school. They did not know that 
learning is not always easy; they expected to learn rapidly. There 
are many reasons why they do not go to school. 

We are trying to figure out ways to motivate these people 
to come to school and also to stay with it after they once start. 
Perhaps we will find the answers to some of these questions while 
we are here. 

Thank you, Mrs. Thompson, for giving me this opportunity 
to talk about the Seminole people, about some of their aspirations, 
and some of the things that they have learned in the last couple of 
years. 


63 








































































































































































































X 


FORT HALL ADULT EDUCATION STORY 
Edgar L. Wight 


Fort Hall was one of the five pilot adult education 
programs initiated by Commissioner Emmons. The program was begun 
officially in April 1956 after several meetings with the Fort Hall 
people and the Fort Hall Tribal Council. 

Basically, the Fort Hall Indian adults were suspicious of 
any new project to be initiated by the Federal Government. This 
feeling still prevails in the minds of many Fort Hall Indians on 
the reservation. Those adult Indians with whom the teachers have 
become acquainted have given some leads as to why such a feeling 
is prevalent on the reservation. Some people feel that the Indians 
were "sold down the river" when the Federal boarding and day schools 
were closed. The Fort Hall boarding school was closed in 1936 and 
the day schools were closed in 1944 and 1948. Others feel that 
non-Indians in the surrounding areas are prejudiced against the 
Indians and their children. Undoubtedly, there is some factual 
basis for this feeling, but it is believed that adult education 
programs can help to overcome this. Of course, such feelings, like 
most prejudices, are based on lack of facts and information. One 
of the big jobs of the adult education staff since 1956 has been 
to make friends with Indian adults and dispel their suspicions of 
non-Indians in general. 

In 1956 a special survey of Fort Hall adults was completed. 
The educational achievement of 656 resident adults, 20 years and 
older, was tabulated. The results of this study are shown in 
Tables I, II, and III. 

One interesting feature about this data is that no 
evidence is present to indicate a lag in education after the closure 
of the Federal schools. The distribution by age groups has been 
grouped in Table II. In Table III the graphical analysis of this 
data shows the educational achievement of each age group. It is 
interesting to note from Table III that educational levels of each 
age group are very similar except for the older group. The peak 
educational level for each of these groups is at about the 7th-8th 
grade level. The old-timers, age 65 plus, who attended school, 
reached their peak at about the 5th-6th grade. 

With adults ranging from those with no schooling to those 
with a college education, some very interesting experiences have 
taken place. The adult program had to be a varied one. After a 


64 





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slow beginning, the number of adult enrollees increased to a peak 
of 66 during the past summer. The fact sheet attached indicates 
the achievement and the type of courses that were offered. There 
have been a number of other interesting outcomes of the program. 

For example, seven adults of the presently enrolled group are 
members of the Fort Hall public school PTA. Mrs. Dora LeClaire, 
mother of nine children, was recently elected treasurer of the 
PTA group. The Pocatello-Fort Hall Citizens' Committee was 
developed since the adult education program began. This committee 
has taken an active interest in adult education and has been 
supported by the adult education staff. There has been an increase 
in the number of young adults and high school graduates in higher 
education. When the program began there were only three Fort Hall 
students in institutions of higher education. The number has 
steadily increased until now over 20 students are taking educational 
and training courses beyond high school. This is in addition to 
five students who are attending Haskell Institute this year. Four 
adult students have enrolled in correspondence courses through a 
special program with a Portland correspondence school. These adults 
are studying diesel mechanics, art metal craft, jewelry making, and 
plastics. Many Fort Hall adults are coming into the adult education 
office and classroom for friendly visits. They seem to realize their 
lack of communication skills and generally desire further instruction 
in English. Mr. Megivern's private cold storage freezer is full of 
fish, deer meat, elk meat and other produce that Indian people have 
given him. Certainly, it would be discourteous for him to refuse 
such gifts and it does help compensate for the high rent paid for 
his present living quarters: 

FUTURE PLANS 


The Adult Education program is now at the turning point. 
About 500-600 adults are to be contacted and motivated into active 
interest in improving themselves educationally. Efforts are now being 
made to reach many of the adults with low educational level. The 
nearly 100 adults who have participated thus far have enrolled to 
improve themselves educationally and to help them to help their 
children who are in elementary and secondary schools on the reser¬ 
vation. Perhaps this is what Mr. Devereaux Josephs, Chairman of 
the President's Committee on Higher Education, had in mind when he 
said recently, "Parents who want to keep up with their children to 
hold their respect better learn what the kids are learning." 


65 















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FACT SHEET 


FORT HALL ADULT EDUCATION 


Date the program was initiated 

April 1956 
Teaching personnel 

Eddie Thompson and Gloria Jones, April 1956 to December 1957. 
Richard Megivern, December 1957 to present. Elmer Anderson June 1958 
to present. 

Center of instruction 


Fort Hall and Bannock Creek 
Number of adults 


794 families enrolled, 320 families living on the reservation. 
It is estimated that 800 to 1,000 Indian adults - 20 years of age 
or older - live on the Fort Hall Reservation. 

Number of adults contacted by adult education teachers - (April 1956 

to October 1958) 

141 at Indian homes; 300 contacts at school office (many of the 
office contacts were repeat contacts and were among the 141 families 
contacted at Indian homes). 

Number of adults taking classes now 

30 (Before potato harvest there were 66 adults taking regular 
classes. Increase in enrollment is expected when potato harvest is 
over). 

Number of adults who have enrolled in classes to date 


97 

Number of adults who have passed the GED tests for obtaining a high 

equivalency certificate 

7 


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Number of GED graduates who have gone on to further training 

5 

Number of adults on the reservation with no formal education 


69 

Average educational level of Fort Hall adults 

7th - 8 th grade 

Major interests of Fort Hall adults in the Adult Education program 

Arithmetic, English, reading, spelling, algebra, world geography, 
American history, general science, correspondence courses, and 
vocational courses. 

Tribal groups 

Shoshone-Bannock including several small tribal groups such as 
the Lemhi-Shoshone. 

Size of reservation 


Approximately 500,000 acres. 

Principal resources 

Irrigated land, rangeland, small area of forest land and 
mineral deposits. 


Income from resources 


$124,000 per 
260,000 per 
140,000 per 
150 .000 per 
$674,000 per 


year, 

year, 

year, 

year, 

year. 


phosphate royalties 
rangeland and cattle 
dry land farming 
irrigated land 

Total or approximately $260.00 per year 
per person enrolled. 


67 


























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68 


FORT HALL - PUBLIC HEALTH SURVEY - APRIL 1956 
















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Total 646 Adults 



69 


FORT HALL ADULTS 
(1956) 



















































TABLE III 


Percent of each age group 


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70 


EDUCATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT - FORT HALL ADULTS 


















XI 


MATERIALS FOR ADULT EDUCATION 
Ann Nolan Clark 


We have longed, for many months, to have Dr. Gray here 
and to have help around the corner. When we started this program 
we had no materials, no guidelines, nothing but a wilderness. I’d 
like to say that we did it by the grace of God, but even God finally 
told me to get Dr. Gray and quick. He not only said to get you, 
but he said that's what he put you down here for. 

We have the materials preparation team which is a very 
small part of the adult program. It was a small part to begin 
with, and we have purposely kept it small. When we began the 
program, as you know, we had three rules which we decided would be 
unbreakable: that the materials which we prepared would be for the 
needs of the people, for the interest of the people, and as much on 
their achievement level as we could make them. 

Our plan of work was to go into an area where John Huskett 
procured all the physical and environmental information that he could 
for us and made pictures of it. Nina Jeffery procured the history 
because we believe that from the environment comes the interests of 
the group, and from their history and their circumstances come their 
needs. We tried to go into an area armed with as much information 
as possible. Our next steps were to meet with Indian groups, with 
the supervisor who worked with us and gave us great cooperation, 
and to see what the people wanted. In the places where we did that, 

I think it paid off. Some places we did not do it, for a variety of 
reasons, but we would meet with the personnel to see what the 
Indians' needs were. If what the personnel said dovetailed with 
what the Indians said they needed, that was what we tried to give 
the people. We had a perfect example of dovetailing in Mississippi, 
which is one of the last places we worked. We had about three 
meetings with Indian groups. They were quite articulate about the 
things that they wanted to know right now. Then we met with the 
staff at the Agency office and listed what they thought the 
Indians needed. Although they were differently expressed, they 
dovetailed very well. 

Mr. Boehmer has told you what we did in Florida and how 
we worked. Florida was our first step into this wilderness. Our 
next step was the Papago. The Papago program, as all the programs 
have been, was intensely interesting. I had thought when I 
developed- the basic books for the Seminole that we could use them 


71 






















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for the Papago because the achievement level was about the same. 

But we found that the Papago people were not interested in banking, 
how to keep the finance company from getting their cars, or how to 
pass a driver's test. They were interested in water, water supply, 
food supply, and home improvements. We saw, then, that what the 
Indians wanted or were interested in would probably be different at 
every place. This was quite a blow to us because of the work and 
the expense involved. 

The Papago Reservation is in the desert. The teacher was 
teaching in an old abandoned tin building. One very, very hot day 
when I was there with Miss McPherson, an old man who was exhausted 
came in and sat in the back of the class. At first he wasn't so 
interested. Then he was trying to do everything everybody else did. 

If they were writing their names, he would have a pencil in his 
hand. When the class was over, he got up and made a long talk in 
Papago. And, suddenly, the Santa Rosa group who were there exploded. 
After we chased the interpreter around the room a couple of times 
and got her to tell us what had happened, we learned that the old 
man had walked from Akchin, which was five miles away, to ask if 
his group could borrow the "old man’s teacher," which they called 
the adult education teacher. The Santa Rosa group said, yes they 
would lend their old man's teacher, they would lend them the old 
building where they were learning but the other groups had to come 
on a different day because, said the Santa Rosa group, "We've 
already learned to read and we are not about to have to learn it 
over again." 

There were many people on the Papago who were at the stage 
where they wanted to learn to write their names. I remember one day, 
an old man, who kept plucking at Miss McPherson's skirts and asking 
to show something, and finally he showed her that he had learned to 
write his name. The next time we came to visit, we went to his funeral. 
But he had satisfaction and great joy that day when he could show 
Miss McPherson that he could write his name. As Mr. Wight and 
Mr. Boehmer told you this morning, we can tell you hundreds of things 
where this program has meant something to a small group of people. 

At the Papago, another thing that was of great interest 
to us was that there was no shame because they didn't know. In some 
of our programs, the people who cannot read, who cannot write, are 
ashamed and they insist upon being taught by themselves. But on the 
Papago when any of us would come in, immediately they would want 
us to help them because they said we were educated people and let's 
get this job done. We thought that was very good because they 
wanted help and they had nothing for comparison with what they didn't 
know, so of course there was no shame there. 


72 










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With the Shoshone-Bannock in Idaho, (this was our third) 

I felt that our program had failed, and I felt that I knew the 
reason why. In the other places where we had been, we had talked 
to the people to see what they wanted to know. With the Shoshone- 
Bannocks in Idaho, we couldn't get three people together because 
they didn't like each other: "if she's going to be there, I won't," 

"if he comes, my family can't come." So we went to the council and 
the council wanted the concept of land to be brought to their people. 
They felt the people didn't understand the non-Indian concept of 
land and land holdings.* They wanted public speaking, and they 
wanted law and order, and they wanted various things. I thought as 
reading material it failed, and the reason it failed was because the 
council thougft: that would be good for you to learn: not for me . 

The teachers worked many months before they could get 
anyone interested. An the first class was a class of ladies who 
wanted to know how to reduce* They cat e, and from their wanting to 
learn how to reduce, they learned many other things such as reading 
and writing so they could copy reducing menus. 

Our next program was given at the hospital in Tacoma. We 
found out the needs of the people through a questionnaire. Although 
many of the people couldn't write, they told what they wanted and 
it was written for them. They wanted to know all about tuberculosis. 
They wanted to know why they got it, how it worked on their bodies, 
what they could do to help themselves, and what they could do when 
they went home. We didn't give what the patients wanted, which was 
a great grief to me. 

The teachers said that the thing they needed was a concept 
of time. It seemed that when we went into the subject and studied it, 
their getting well depended upon their concept of time, concept of 
time of incubation of the disease, of the exposure, of taking of 
medicine, and of rest. The patients had no concept of these things, 

So these teachers, who were public school teachers, prepared two 
books. The last time I was there, they were making a job survey 
which I thought was excellent. This job survey included the 
requirements of a job, what it could give you, and how near it would 
be to either Tacoma or Alaska. Many of these patients were from 
Alaska. This survey was to be developed into two-page pamphlets and 
distributed. 

Quite a few of the people in the hospital had some education. 
There again, we came upon a snag in trying to find out the achieve¬ 
ment level of these groups, because if a person of 45 or 50 says he 
went to school five years, you have no way of knowing whether it was 


73 

























five consecutive years, or whether it was three months now, and a 
month then. You have no way of knowing what V v learned 25 years 
ago, even if he had gone day after day and had had fifth grade work. 

From talking with the teachers of these pilot groups that 
we worked with first, we came to the conclusion that what the people 
were interested in was from pre-literacy up to functional literacy. 
Miss Jeffery and I believe, with no scientific foundation you 
understand, that many of the frustrations and heartaches and problems 
of the Indian Bureau is right here: they don't understand, because 
they do not have functional literacy. We think, also - you under¬ 
stand think . our opinion - that there is a greater proportion at this 
pre-functional literacy level than had been thought. We believe that 
the maturity of the men and women of middle age or over - their 
personality, their innate courtesy, and their experiences are apt 
to color our judgment of what they actually comprehend. We know that 
the subject of literacy goes on and on, and that there is a need for 
it all through, and that there are people - perhaps a great number of 
people - who want it on this lower level. We had to start some place. 
We had to start small, and I was interested in this phase. 

The next program we worked with was in the Gallup Area. 

Now the Gallup Area is a vast area - it means the Utes, the Pueblos, 
and many different programs on the Navajo. Here again, we had to 
do it differently. We went around, we :;aw the situation, but we 
did not meet with the people because the area was so vast and the 
distances great. So Mr. Benhai and Mr. Murray brought all the 
adult educators in to us and we took their judgment. The Navajo 
have some very good teachers in their program, I think. A young 
man by the name of Norman Green worked on social adjustment, economic 
adjustment, government, and health. It was decided that to give the 
people what they wanted, these areas would probably be covered. 

We stole the idea from him because it was good. We didn't 
steal it; we just took it; and when I checked the Seminole material 
against these areas, there is an imbalance of too much economic 
adjustment. When I checked the Papago, there is an imbalance of too 
much water safety, procurement of water, food, and safety. So we 
took these areas as our model. When we worked in Mississippi and 
when we worked in other places, we tried to give them a little bit 
of everything. 

About this time, we decided that we had run up against 
another snag and that was that we couldn't group the people. We 
had husbands and wives and neighbors in all of these programs - not 
only the Navajo, all of them. We had people on different levels. 

They wouldn't even sit in different parts of the room. A wife might 


74 



























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never have been to school while her husband had a fourth grade 
education or third grade education, but you couldn't get one on one 
side and one on the other. So we had to teach them together, and 
we had to teach them about the same thing if we were going to make 
them functional - I can't say functionally literate - but you know 
what I mean. If a man couldn't read but still he owned a car, we 
had to prepare him to take a driver's examination. 

We decided to try charts and now we believe in them. We 
think that charts are better for instructional purposes than books. 
After they have mastered the charts, most of them want a book because 
they want to take it home and because a book means to them an 
achievement. So we have charts on all levels. If we have three 
different achievement levels in the room, we may have two charts and 
a book so that all the people are learning something that they need. 

Just because I can't read or write is no reason why I'm 
not faced with all of the problems that you're faced with today, and 
one of the things that talking to these people has made us believe 
is that they want to be like their neighbors. They don't want to 
be different, as far as learning and achievement is concerned, from 
the people around them. We had a very good workshop at Navajo. The 
teachers prepared booklets on all these things at three different 
levels. We have touched just the surface of the Montana needs. 

Miss Jeffery and Howard Mackey did some preliminary work in Kansas 
and in Oklahoma, but there hasn't been any follow-up work on it. 

We had thought that this last year we would prepare what 
we sometimes would call a mass of material - and that this year we 
would emphasize use because there is no booklet, there is no chart, 
and there is no program of any value at all unless the material is 
used correctly. We plan, at least, to do some revising this year: 
probably throw away, delete, change, adapt. And one thing about 
teacher-prepared material is that there is nothing sacred about it. 
You can use it; you can change it; you can throw it away. The only 
thing that we want to do is to meet the challenge that the Indians 
are giving to us. 

We've had criticism and I wouldn't mind the criticisms if 
they weren't valid. One criticism is that it's baby stuff, and it 
is, because we set up some rules. We set up different rules for 
different situations trying to find, trying to map out, what is the 
answer to this teaching of adults. I thought that the content might 
offset its being too simple. Another criticism that comes from the 
inside - the teachers, Nina, John, and me - is that we go too fast, 
that we don't make enough preparation. There again, I know we go 
too fast, but when I try to rationalize it, I say that these people 










































































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are not at zero; that they're mature and they've been learning all 
these years even if they haven't been learning the book learning 
we're giving them now; that probably they already have the concepts 
and probably know in their language the word for it; and that what 
they need to have is the English expression and the security of 
knowing how to use it. 

Another criticism that we've had, valid too, is that we 
take adult content material and we just scratch the surface. There 
again, we were aware of the problem but we thought that if we made 
it too involved and too long, the people would get tired. One of 
the things they love is to have finished a book, even when we think 
they haven't finished it, when we think there are many learnings to 
come from that book. They like very much the idea, "This we've done." 
Another criticism is that perhaps our approach was wrong. I don't 
know. These are questions. Because when even Dr. Gray says he 
doesn't know for sure, you know I'm not alone in it. 

One of the rules we said we would not break was that we 
would not impose this material on the Indians, that it would have 
to come from their interest. Well, a group of Indians get interested 
and they say, "Mrs. Clark," or "Miss Jeffery, we want to know about 
alcohol. Our people drink too much. We want to know what causes 
it and what can stop it." When they say they want to know about 
government, when they say they want to know about tuberculosis, 
what do you do but give it to them? I've reached the point where 
I believe that you are going to have to get a lower content; that 
perhaps our content was too mature; and in making the reading rules 
which we thought they would need, there was too much discrepancy 
between them. Anyway, perhaps we'll learn. 

Now the last part is to say that these are our problems 
in addition to our problem of approach. We think that every one of 
these is important to learning. Nina and I believe that the laws 
of learning apply to the man of 55 the same as to a child of six 
excepting probably the emphasis on time. That may be wrong. 

We have another problem in the preparation of material. 

Now I know that there's proportion between running words and between 
new words and total words. I don't know what it is. We have tried 
various methods in our various programs. We feel that maybe we have 
the answer to these things in this mass of material but we don't know 
how to get it. We don't know how to make our finding and we think 
that there should be a proportion of total words to new words, but 
what this proportion is we don't know. One thing that we do know 
from experience is that these people cannot take more than three 
new words to a lesson, and that it's better for them in every way 
to have one or two words. 


76 





XII 


SROMOTING GROWTH AMONG ADULTS TO THE LEVEL OF FUNCTIONAL LITERACY 

Dr. William S. Gray 

(This address cannot be reproduced without Dr. Gray's permission) 


The problem of training adults to read is so varied in 
character that it is impossible in a brief discussion to prescribe 
appropriate solutions for each area or culture. It seems advisable, 
therefore, to present certain principles, facts, and procedures that 
will provide a foundation for discussit- 1 , specific problems that you 
face in promoting literacy among Indian adults. 

WORLD-WIDE EFFORT TO PROMOTE LITERACY 

What you are attempting to do for American Indians is 
part of a world-wide effort to eliminate illiteracy. It has swept 
over the world like a tidal wave since the close of World War II. 

As a result there has been renewed effort uid determination in prac¬ 
tically all countries to find a solution for this challenging and 
complex problem. Two reasons have been advanced for vigorous ef¬ 
fort to achieve world literacy: first, a clear recognition of the 
tremendous role that literacy may play in promoting individual 
development and group progress; and, second, the growing conviction 
that world literacy is essential to intergroup understanding and a 
just and lasting peace. But mere literacy is not enough. Effort 
is also being made to provide the adult with an expanded background 
of experience and a growing insight into the nature of his own prob¬ 
lems and those of the larger culture to which he now belongs. 

The size of the task faced in promoting world-wide literac/ 
is a tremendous one. At the close of World War II at least 50 
percent of the adults in the world were unable to read and write, 
and at least two-thirds of them had not attained functional literacy. 
As commonly defined, functional literacy is the equivalent in ability 
to read and write of that of a child who has attended school con¬ 
tinuously and made normal progress during a period of four years. 

But as I shall explain later, this concept of functional literacy 
is inadequate to meet the needs of today's world. What the percent¬ 
age of illiterates was at the close of World War II, in terms of 
the higher standards that are now essential, is unknown. 

Studies made during the last decade revealed the fact 
that many adults were very eager to learn to read and write. In 
Nigeria, for example, where troops had been stationed during World 
War II, the natives learned that different conditions prevailed in 


77 










































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other parts of the world. They saw that the soldiers were able to 
read newspapers and to write letters and that their ability to do 
these things served them well. As a result, a "burning desire" for 
literacy developed on the part of many Nigerians. In South Africa 
the man in the bush found, as industrialization occurred, that if 
he was going to secure employment he had to be able to follow printed 
directions, to read the signs on the street and in the factory, and 
to be able to correspond with his family when he was away at work. 
Many Africans were eager also to find out how the people in other 
parts of the continent lived, and if they were under British rule 
they wanted to know more about England and the English way of life. 
Other compelling motives for becoming literate were to gain social 
status, to qualify for citizenship, to be eligible to hold office, 
and to be able to read the Bible or other sacred literature. 

The foregoing comments emphasize the fact that within the 
last ten years the desire on the part of many illiterate adults to 
learn to read has increased by leaps and bounds in certain areas 
of the world. I assume from my conversation with some of you that 
this holds also among certain of the Indian tribes. Some adults 
are ready and eager to learn to read and write. But the number of 
people who have thus been self-motivated is comparatively small in 
many areas. Even vigorous literacy campaigns during the latter 
part of the forties often failed to arouse as wide interest in 
learning to read as had been expected. There was the same skep¬ 
ticism, hesitancy, and unwillingness to adopt new patterns of 
living that you have reported. 

At the close of World War II the conditions faced by 
individuals and groups in many underdeveloped areas were desperate 
due to disease, malnutrition, ignorance, superstition, inadequate 
methods of farming, impositions of landlords, and lack of freedom 
to help rule themselves. 

In efforts to overcome some of these conditions, con¬ 
structive steps were adopted in different countries of the world. 

They took various forms. In India the program adopted was called 
social education, and in China mass education. In the latter 
country it is not a matter now of whether you want to become liter¬ 
ate; it is rather the decision of the government that all learn to 
read and write. According to reports, China is making tremendous 
progress in achieving functional literacy among an increasing num¬ 
ber of her people. In the Philippines the effort to improve the 
conditions of adults is called community education. The local 
school is made the center of both child and adult education. In 
the evening school buildings are centers where young people and 
older men and women gather to study their problems, to learn to 


78 





read and write if they are illiterate, and to grow intellectually 
along with their children who are in school during the day. The 
fact that both child and adult education are community-centered 
has been a vital means of awakening wide interest among adults in 
acquiring needed information and ultimately in becoming literate. 

Perhaps the broadest single effort to improve individual 
and group welfare has been called Fundamental Education and has 
been stimulated and directed by UNESCO. This and all the other 
efforts to which I have referred are integral parts of the current 
world-wide literacy movement. Of special significance is the fact 
that literacy training is not introduced as the starting point in 
efforts to improve the status of individuals and groups but as a 
means to desired ends. In attempting to meet the immediate needs 
of adults, every aid to learning is used at first--discussions, 
pictures, posters, trips, radio, and motion pictures. One of the 
challenging problems faced in this connection relates to the most 
effective methods of getting ideas across to those who cannot read. 

STEPS IN STIMULATING A DESIRE FOR LITERACY 

As indicated above, efforts to improve individual and 
group status begin by meeting the immediate needs of people. 

Every means available was used, just as in primary education many 
devices are employed in acquainting boys and girls with the ideas 
they should acquire. This approach at the adult level was adopted 
for two reasons. First, the practical needs faced in many under¬ 
developed areas were so urgent that they required immediate at¬ 
tention; second, many adults had not learned the value of reading 
in solving their problems and in enriching their lives. An impor¬ 
tant motive in early work with them was to demonstrate that their 
conditions could be improved and to acquaint them with ways of 
doing so. As progress was made, steps were taken to reveal the 
fact that ability to read and write was of great value in efforts 
to solve many of their problems. 

A few examples at this point may be appropriate. In a 
region in Mexico many of the farmers were working on worn-out soil 
and were unable to sustain themselves and their families. They 
asked the leader of the fundamental education team to call a meeting 
to consider possible steps to take. All of the adults who were 
interested came and gave voice to their complaints. They also ex¬ 
pressed the urgent need for help. Among other preliminary steps 
the leader had invited to the meeting one of the natives from a 
neighboring community who was a successful farmer, on the same kind 
of soil. The adults asked him to tell them why he was able to 
raise good crops and they did not. In the course of the discussion, 


79 























































he stated that he had learned from government bulletins how to plow 
the land and to take care of it so that good land was not washed 
away. 


As he answered the questions of the group he showed pic¬ 
tures from one of the bulletins and read to them descriptions of 
good procedures. Among other things he said "For years I have been 
reading these books as I plan my work. From them I learn first how 
to raise one crop and then another. I would not be able to raise 
good crops today if I hadn't learned how from these bulletins." 
Instantly hands began to go up and the question was raised "Can we 
get copies of them, too?" "Yes" he replied, "all you have to do is 
to write to" (and he gave them a name and address). "But," they 
said, "We can't read or write." As a result of the evening's dis¬ 
cussion, there was a demand for a literacy class from most of the 
men in the group. 

Another illustration comes from the Philippines. Many of 
the people living northwest of Manila were unable to get along well 
following World War II because of the devastated condition of the 
country. The adults met tpgether and asked their leaders "What can 
we do to make a better living? The things which we formerly did do 
not enable us to make a living." During the course of the meeting 
they were told, "Prices of eggs and chickens are very high in 
Manila. Mr. Brown who lives in another community is well-to-do 
because he is raising things that the citizens of Manila need." In 
the course of the discussion reference was made to helpful pri :ed 
materials, pictures were shown, and the adults who attended th£ 
meeting requested that literacy training be provided. 

A different type of motive developed among the natives of 
South Africa*. They learned that there were better ways of living 
than they enjoyed and that one way to attain them was to secure a 
job in a nearby industry. When they applied for positions they were 
asked such questions as, "Can you read directions?" "Can you read 
the safety signs?" The desire to qualify for desired positions 
stimulated many adults to join literacy classes. What I am trying 
to say is that situations have been set up or have developed all 
over the world that have motivated adults to learn to read and write. 
The problem of securing attendance of unmotivated adults is a very 
challenging one. There is no single solution for it excepting in 
some way or other to break through the crust of indifference and to 
develop an inner urge on the part of the individual to want to learn. 

We face the same problem with remedial cases in reading. 

I worked with a boy in Toledo for three months trying to enlist his 
interest in learning to read. Every device I could think of failed 


80 



until one day I discovered through conversation with him that he was 
keenly interested in baseball and that he knew a lot about the game. 
Accordingly, I arranged with his teacher for him to make a report 
to his class each day on baseball events. For the first two reports 
he recalled past owledge and was able to present interesting facts. 
Then he came to me and said, "I°m stuck. I've got to find out for 
tomorrow what's happened today. But I can't read the papers. I 
wish I could." Up to this time he had been rejecting all offers to 
help him. "I will be glad to help you," I said. 

From that moment on he applied himself vigorously to the 
task of learning to read. We developed remedial materials for him 
relating to his dominant interest. He learned the names of the 
leading players and how to read the scores. Gradually he acquired 
the basic vocabulary essential in reading newspaper reports of games. 
Once a child or an adult discovers a compelling motive for learning 
to read, he is usually willing to apply himself vigorously to gain 
some coveted goal or reward. 

METHODS OF TEACHING ADULTS TO READ 

By 1949, the various agencies referred to earlier were 
attempting to promote literacy in their respective countries or 
areas. As they did so, they found that the choice of methods of 
teaching reading and writing was one of the most challenging prob¬ 
lems they faced. As a result, they requested officials of the 
United Nations to provide them with needed guidance. That organi¬ 
zation then requested UNESCO to make a world-wide study to find out 
the nature of the various methods used, their relative merits, and 
on the basis of the evidence secured to map out procedures for 
teaching reading and writing. The reason for this great concern on 
the part of people everywhere was that many methods of teaching 
were used in efforts to eliminate illiteracy. Each had its ardent 
advocates and its vigorous opponents. The discussion became so 
heated that confusion prevailed. After some preliminary studies, 
UNESCO authorized an investigation to achieve the. three ends out¬ 
lined above. 

A preliminary study revealed the fact that highly motivated 
groups eagerly sought training, no matter what method was employed, 
and most of them usually learned to read. They were not concerned 
with reading as a mere accomplishment but as a means of achieving 
desired ends. Those who tended to resist reading had to be remoti¬ 
vated constantly. Further study showed that it was impossible to 
secure attendance of an unmotivated group for a long period of time 
with only a remote reward in view. It was necessary to adopt a 
short-time period of training which aimed to achieve quickly a few 


81 







things that were greatly desired, such as ability to write one's 
name or to read signs, or simple notices on the public bulletin 
board. While achieving these goals, effort was made to develop 
motives for learning to read and write at a more advanced level. 

I was keenly interested in the rocket illustration reported Wednes¬ 
day because it applied admirably to the less thoroughly motivated 
group. The first charge in the rocket carries it on the first lap 
of its journey. While that charge is exhausting itself, conditions 
are set up for the next charge which carries the rocket farther on 
its journey. 

In the study of methods, which was the chief task that 
UNESCO undertook, the following procedures were adopted. Requests 
were sent to leaders in various parts of the world for descriptions 
and samples of the methods used. They varied all the way from 
unison reading to the use of the radio in stimulating and directing 
groups of adults under the immediate direction of a leader. In one 
of the missionary centers in Africa, various methods were used in 
efforts to teach the natives to read. All of them failed until the 
leader conceived the idea of teaching the group to read the songs 
they liked to sing. He mimeographed and distributed them to the 
group. As the natives sang, they pointed to the words in order. 

They did this repeatedly until they had mastered a basic sight vo¬ 
cabulary on which later instruction was based. Scores of equally 
unique methods of teaching reading were reported. 

As the methods which have been used in the past were 
studied in historical perspective, it was found that there has 
been a distinct trend away from highly specialized methods such as 
the alphabetic or phonic method to eclectic methods which make use 
of all of the techniques essential in developing a good reader. 

The traditional methods stressed a single aspect of reading and 
failed to prepare the learner to engage in fluent, thoughtful 
reading. Good practice today is to adopt a series of techniques 
which emphasize all essential aspects of reading and which comprise 
a broad reading program. The training provided at each level of 
progress prepares the learner to read effectively at that level and 
lays a broad foundation for more advanced training. A second trend 
departs from the use of materials that are logically arranged solely 
in terms of reading skills, and turns to those which give large at¬ 
tention to the interests of the age group taught. 

The various methods identified in the UNESCO study were 
analyzed into groups which were similar in principle. They varied 
all the way from those which began with the elements of words and 
gave major emphasis to the skills of word recognition, to those 


82 

























































































































which made use of meaningful language units and gave major emphasis 
from the beginning to the meaning of what is read. A review of the 
results of scientific studies of the relative merits of the various 
methods was very revealing. They sho\ id, first, that no one method 
has thus far been found to be superior to all other methods. This 
is due to the fact that all of the methods identified have not been 
subjected to experii. motaLion. It was found, second, that all in¬ 
dividuals do not react with equal effectiveness to a given method. 
Those whose vision is poor may profit most from auditory presenta¬ 
tions with emphasis upon the sounds of word elements. Others, 
whose hearing is poor, have to rely more largely on visual discrim¬ 
ination. Indian youth and adults who are acquiring a masterycdi 'the 
English language should learn to use words containing the basic 
sounds of our language before they are asked to distinguish one 
from the other, and to identify each. This is why I emphasized 
earlier the importance of clear, distinct pronunciation. 

A third conclusion justified by the scientific studies 
reviewed was that contrasting methods, such as the synthetic and 
the analytic, secure different results. If you stress phonics only 
you are going to cultivate attention to the details of words and 
secure growth in ability to recognize words independently. But as 
soon as the glamour of such achievement is over, interest in learning 
to read is gone. If, on the other hand, you emphasize meaning 
largely you promote keener interest in reading and greater concern 
for the meaning of what is read, but less efficiency in word-attack 
skills. Ultimately a sound reading program must emphasize all of 
the attitudes and skills that make for efficiency in reading. The 
final conclusion was that best results are secured through the use 
of methods which emphasize both meaning and word recognition from 
the beginning. 


ROLE OF READING IN ADULT LIFE 

As the foregoing problems were studied, questions arose 
concerning the specific role of reading in the lives of newly 
literate adults, and the nature of the attitudes and skills needed. 
In seeking answers to these questions, information was secured from 
various sections of the world. Some of the reports will be summar¬ 
ized briefly. A group of natives in South Africa stated they needed 
to read in order to observe danger signals on highways and at work, 
to locate streets and buildings, to follow directions, to keep in 
touch with members of their families when away from home, to keep 
up with the news, and to read little books on how to do it, health¬ 
ful living, best food to eat, and better ways of farming. 


33 










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Reports from Thailand indicated that adults read to learn 
how to do their work better and to conduct their businesses more 
effectively. This motive is a very rea._ one because a great many 
of the business men in Thailand are Chinese. As a result, many of 
the Thai people have been stimulated to learn to read in order that 
they may compete more effectively with the Chinese. They read also 
to keep in touch with developments in their country, to find answers 
to personal and social problems, and to satisfy religious aspirations. 
Many of the young men also spend a period of time in training for the 
priesthood which requires reading. In reports from India special 
emphasis was given to the fact that all people must learn to read 
thoughtfully and critically if they are to be good citizens and to 
help build a democracy adapted to their needs. 

An analysis of the various types of evidence reported 
above led to the conclusion that there are certain reading attitudes 
and skills essential the world over. They can be summarized in 
terms of the four dimensions of the reading act described yesterday, 
namely, to perceive words accurately; to grasp the literal, implied 
and related meanings of the passages read; to react thoughtfully to 
the ideas apprehended; and to integrate the ideas secured through 
reading with what they already know. The conclusion was reached, 
therefore, that as far as the mastery of both the mechanics of 
reading and the habits of thoughtful interpretation are concerned, 
the problems of teaching reading are similar the world over. 

This view is further supported by photographic records 
of the eye movements of mature, readers from fourteen different 
countries. One of the groups included literate Navajo Indians 
living in Chicago. They were not quite mature readers but wewe well 
on the way to maturity in reading. In the case of readers of all 
fourteen languages their eye movements follow the same pattern. The 
eyes rhythmically move along the line from left to right, from right 
to left, or from top to bottom, according to the way in which the 
language is printed. The mature reader perceives words as wholes 
and, if they are simple words, in units of two or three. This is 
true whether he is reading Chinese symbols, a combination of Chinese 
symbols and syllable sound symbols as in the Japanese written lan¬ 
guage, or an alphabetic language. Obviously, we are facing the 
same general problems in promoting efficient readers the world over. 

ORGANIZATION OF LITERACY TRAINING 

In the past literacy programs have usually been organized 
in terms of a series of twenty-four lessons or more, and a certifi¬ 
cate granted on their completion no matter how well the individual 
could read. After this practice became, well established, the demand 


84 















































(! 


































arose for functional literacy which was defined earlier as ability 
to read at least as well as a child who has completed four full 
years of schooling. The army has found that this attainment is not 
enough. As a result the minimum requirements now proposed are 
several grades higher. Industry is also demanding higher levels 
of functional literacy. The same thing is true in England and in 
various countries of Europe. A survey of needs in various parts 
of the world led to the conclusion that the same standards are not 
universally applicable. Accordingly, I proposed the following 
definition in my UNESCO report. Functional literacy involves that 
level of ability to read and write that is normally expected of all 
literate persons in the culture of which he is a part. If the 
community is isolated, the requirement will be relatively limited. 

As life becomes more complex and men and women become a part of a 
larger culture, the problem faced is, first, to help them to meet 
their immediate needs; second, to help them to become respected 
members of their own community by doing effectively whatever their 
culture demands; third, to help them become intelligent citizens 
in the world community of which they are a part. 

In order to secure the desired results, literacy programs 
have been divided into a succession of relatively short stages each 
of which has distinctive goals. The chief aim of the first stage 
is to promote reading readiness; that is, to prepare the adult to 
learn to read and write with reasonable ease and facility. The 
extent of the command of oral English cannot be placed as high as 
it should be in the case of children because of the eagerness of 
adults to learn to read at once. The minimum oral vocabulary 
developed (before reading is introduced) varies from 50 to 300 words 
or more. The language activities provided are based on topics of 
common interest and involve the vocabulary of daily use rather than 
a specialized vocabulary. The discussions are accompanied by the 
use of all pertinent aids to learning that are available. In order 
that the individual may feel that he is making progress, learning 
to write is introduced at the very beginning. This satisfies his 
desire to be able to write and read his own name as well as those 
of his family. Some of the words used in oral conversation are 
written on the black board, labels are placed under things around 
the room, and signs appear here and there. Thus, the adult is 
placed in an environment in which he can become familiar with the 
use of printed symbols and begin to acquire a small sight vocabu¬ 
lary. As with children, the length of the period required to 
attain reading readiness varies widely. With highly motivated 
adults and those who speak English, the initial period in learning 
to read may begin as early as the second class period. 


85 


























































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INITIAL PERIOD IN LEARNING TO READ 

In developing a meaningful sight vocabulary, very genuine 
problems arise. In the first booklet which you use, pictures are 
included as aids in helping adults to associate meaning with nouns, 
pronouns, and some verbs. You may be interested in the procedure 
used in a bilingual community where the second language is imposed 
from the beginning. I have in my hands a French book uaegl in 
Africa. It makes very elaborate use of pictures from the beginning 
to the end, thus following the English pattern in teaching a second 
language. The English try to teach both the speaking and reading 
of English through the use of the same material. The French usually 
develop a small oral vocabulary through conversation and then develop 
meaningful associations with printed words. 

You will notice that as such associations are made, the 
French begin immediately to analyze words into their respective 
sound elements. This step can be introduced with adults very much 
earlier than with children. As adults mature they become more 
analytical and logical in their thinking, and are able to apply 
principles more effectively than children. In the case of the 
other books in the series of ten prepared by Mrs. Clark, effective 
use is made of pictures from the beginning. As pupils advance, all 
the meaning difficulties cannot be anticipated through the use of 
pictures. The teacher must therefore provide needed help on the 
meanings of many words, as was done in one of the classes we ob¬ 
served Wednesday. 

A major problem which you face relates to the vocabulary 
of the material you are going to use during the initial stage in 
learning to read. As in the case of children, a sequential program 
in reading is essential until a vocabulary of some twelve to fifteen 
hundred words of high functional value has been learned. The best 
vocabulary study I know of at the literacy level was made by the 
Works Progress Administration in 1939. They developed a series of 
successive vocabulary lists beginning with very simple words and 
including a total of about 1,500. In deriving this list some 
twelve to fifteen different lists were composed and the most fre¬ 
quently used words in all of them were selected. I recommend the 
establishment of a committee to develop, through cooperative effort, 
a vocabulary that would meet the needs of the Indian adults whom 
you are teaching. 

A second problem relates to the content of the material 
to be used. I have great admiration for the booklets prepared by 
Mrs. Clark, but she, as well as others, is dissatisfied with their 
adequacy in developing a basic vocabulary in reading which is 


86 


























































































essentia].. In this connection the question arises, what is the 
nature of the content or themes that should be used? The booklet 
that provides the best opportunity for sequential vocabulary devel¬ 
opment is the one that relates to activities in the home and makes 
use of the common everyday language of adults. 

I discussed this problem with a group at the breakfast 
table this morning and pointed out the fact that in many of the 
underdeveloped areas of the world a common interest relates to cur¬ 
rent events in the community. A bulletin is posted daily in the 
center of the village where people meet at night. They are eager 
to find out the news of the day. Those who are unable to read ask 
others to read the bulletin to them. It is possible that vital con¬ 
tent for early instruction in reading could be based, in part, on 
community news. I received this summer copies of some of the folk¬ 
lore of the Navajo group. I found it to be very interesting and 
intriguing reading and was told that many of the Indians were tre¬ 
mendously interested in such materials. Such materials offer a pos¬ 
sibility. As I stated earlier, the nature of the content of begin¬ 
ning readers for Indians is a very challenging problem. 

In preparing for this meeting I spent two or three days 
analyzing the vocabulary of the ten booklets that Mts. Clark pre¬ 
pared. I wanted to find out if the vocabulary of the first booklet 
was of high functional value and paved the way for reading the 
other booklets in the series. I found that when the content changed 
from accounts of home life to specialized activities, serious diffi¬ 
culties arose. Furthermore, many of the words in some of the booklets 
relate only to specialized activities and fail to build up a vocabu¬ 
lary of frequently used words. Experience in teaching both children 
and adults shows clearly that the selections used must make use of 
words of high functional value that prepare the reader gradually to 
read independently an increasingly wide range of reading materials. 

A good set of basal readers for children focuses on the development 
of a common reading vocabulary and then introduces books on health, 
science, and the social studies which are used in the respective 
school subjects rather than during the reading period. 

USE OF READING MATERIALS RELATING TO SPECIAL TOPICS 

Concerning the use of reading materials relating to spe¬ 
cial topics, may I refer to suggestions included in a chapter I 
prepared for the 1959 Yearbook of the National Society for the 
Study of Education. As informational materials are used, many types 
of guidance are essential. Of primary importance is the arousal of 
interest in the new materials presented. A second step is to aid 
the learner in the recall of related experiences. This is essential 


87 




























































' * 


















































































if he is to be able to read such booklets as those relating to 
buying and selling, or to banking. New items of information can be 
introduced first in oral discussions through the use of pictures or 
in any other way that will enable the adult to understand the con¬ 
tent of the passages to be read. If new words and concepts are in¬ 
troduced in the lesson they should be used in a preliminary discus¬ 
sion until their meaning and significance are clear. Experience 
shows that it is also helpful to write them on the black board, thus 
providing an initial acquaintance with their form. If familiar 
words are used with new or unusual meaning, the latter should be 
made clear. Before the discussion ends, the class should be asked 
to suggest the types of information and the answers: to questions 
that they would like to secure as they read. 

As indicated by the foregoing discussion, most of the 
booklets now available are not appropriate for use in the develop¬ 
ment of a basic reading vocabulary. The content of such booklets 
should be very interesting to all adults and provide for the con¬ 
tinuous and expanding use of a vocabulary of high functional value 
in all reading activities. As adults become interested in such 
items as banking, you discuss the procedures involved and find out 
the questions that they would like to have answered. As you answer 
these questions and use new words that are in the book, they should 
be written on the black board. As the discussion proceeds you can 
say "Here is a booklet that tells about banking. Let us read it 
together and see what it says." 

Instead of having the individual work laboriously for a 
long time in trying to read something that is very hard for him, 
the teacher should guide him in the study and discussion of it. 

She may read the first line, talk about it, and raise a question 
that will direct attention to what is coming. As items of informa¬ 
tion are secured, the teacher may ask, "What new facts have you 
learned? What questions do they answer for us?" With the help of 
the teacher a group should read three, four, five, six, or even 
seven pages, depending on their stage of advancement, during a 
class period. At the close of the lesson the teacher may say, "I'd 
like for you to take this book home, reread the pages we have 
studied today; think about the things they tell you, and let me know 
at our next lesson other questions you want to discuss. Remember 
these words in particular"--(point to key words listed in the book 
or on the black board). The technique, then, of using a booklet 
relating to specialized areas of interest is different from that 
used in basal instruction in reading. 


88 

















































































During the initial period of reading instruction, such 
booklets cannot be used to advantage. A basic vocabulary of about 
300 words or more must be mastered first. During the second period 
of basal instruction, adults should acquire a total reading vocabu¬ 
lary of about a thousand words of high functional value. During 
the third period there is no limit to the extent of the vocabulary 
that may be mastered. 


CONCLUDING STATEMENT 

Briefly, what I have tried to do this morning is to lay 
a foundation for the discussion that follows rather than to discuss 
all of the problems faced in teaching adults to read. Indeed, we 
do not know at present the answers to all of the challenging prob¬ 
lems that arise. The more we study, the more we can learn about 
them and the methods of solving them. 


89 



XIII 


GUIDELINES FOR ADULT EDUCATION 

Panel Discussion 

Chairman - Robert J. Murray 
Summary - Madison Coombs 


The Area Directors of Schools and the Assistant Area 
Directors (C.S.) who were present devoted considerable time at the 
afternoon session on Friday, November 7, to a discussion of the 
Adult Education program. They were concerned, of course, with the 
function which officials in their positions should perform in 
direqting and facilitating adult education programs in their 
respective Areas, but the discussion soon broadened to include some 
very crucial questions with which the Bureau's Adult Education 
program is faced. These may be stated as follows: 

1. Defining the legitimate goals and purposes of adult 
education on Indian reservations and setting its outer program 
boundaries. 

2. Defining more precisely the role of the adult educator. 

3. The recruitment of more capable personnel to work in 
adult education. 

a. There appeared to be general agreement that in the 
last analysis the total program of the Bureau is 
an educational one. In the Bureau’s program 
operations, whichever they may be, there is a basic 
need for Indian adults to be informed and to develop 
understandings. In the discussions, the Branches 
of Credit and of Forestry were used to illustrate 
this point. The Credit specialist and the Forester 
both have specialized roles, of course. There is 
a great deal of technical "know how" connected with 
their jobs. The Credit man needs to build a program 
in cooperation with the Tribal Council with regu¬ 
lations and procedures spelled out. The Forester 
must know about forest conservation and management. 
The same could be said for the range manager or the 
soil conservationist. But is his job done unless 
he can impart much of his information and many of 
his skills and understandings to the adult Indians 
concerned? As someone put it, "Is the job of the 
Forester to manage the forests for the Indians, or 
is it to teach the Indians to manage the forests 


90 
































































































































































for themselves?" If we agree to the latter, then 
the role of the Forester is in large part an 
educational one. 

It was further pointed out that the adult 
educator is not a specialist in Credit or in 
Forestry. He is an educator. Rot only is he 
not technically competent in these specialized 
fields, but he does not have the responsibility 
for the development or implementation of a Credit 
or Forestry program. He is, presumably, proficient 
as a teacher or educationist. He knows the methods 
and techniques for helping adults develop skills 
and understandings. But he cannot assume the 
responsibility for "putting across" the programs 
of other branches. 

b. Many Indian adults, it was pointed out, have as 

their basic educational objective the acquiring of 
language and numerical skills (speaking, reading, 
and writing English or simple arithmetic) or a 
continuation of their education at a higher level 
by taking correspondence courses or preparing for 
the General Educational Development Tests. It 
was not difficult to agree that this kind of 
instruction was properly the responsibility of the 
adult educator. 

The role of the adult educator with respect 
to the adult concerns for which other program 
Branches have responsibility was much less clear. 

It seemed that the work of the Forester and the 
adult educator should support each other in the 
educative process, but there were no firm conclusions 
as to how this could be best accomplished without 
the adult educator assuming responsibility that 
was not properly his. How could the Forester best 
utilize or learn from the experience and skill of 
the adult educator in performing the educational 
part of his job? 

It was agreed that the Area Director and the 
Agency Superintendent, as line officers at their 
respective levels, must necessarily be key persons 
in working out any coordination of efforts between 
the adult educator and program people of other 
Branches. The Commissioner's memorandum of 
April 12, 1956 was cited in support of this. 


91 







































































































It was recommended that the Central Office 
draft a proposed policy statement, covering the 
boundaries of the adult education program and the 
role of the adult educator, as a basis for further 
discussions with line officials at the Area level 
and with the personnel of the various program 
branches. Mrs. Thompson stated that this would be 
done prior to the projected meeting of the Area 
Directors of Schools in February. At that time the 
matter will be discussed further. 

The chairman of the discussion group raised the 
question of whether adult education positions should 
not be upgraded to make them more consistent with 
the responsibility and difficulty of their jobs and 
to facilitate the recruitment of better qualified 
personnel. This seemed to represent the feeling of 
most of the Area Directors of Schools and Assistant 
Area Directors (C.S.). Reasons given in support 
of this proposal were: 

(1) Many adult units have been established at 

locations where the Bureau does not operate 
schools for the education of Indian children. 
Therefore, the adult educator is directly 
under the administrative supervision of the 
Agency Superintendent or Area Field Agent. 

In these situations he has the over-all 
responsibility of developing an educational 
program for adults for which local curriculum 
guides have not as yet been established. 

(2) The initial development of this program at 
each unit relies heavily upon the creative 
and professional preparation of the adult 
educators. Area officials felt that the 
grades for such positions should be at a 
level whereby top, professionally trained 
people could be recruited. 

(3) The Area officials also felt that these adult 
educators may be called upon as a secondary 
duty to serve as technical educational 
advisers to personnel in Branches other than 
Education. 



















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♦ 


















































































(4) If an anticipated expansion occurs during 

the fiscal year 1959, many of the present adult 
educators will have additional supervisory 
responsibilities along with teaching and 
curriculum development. 


93 











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XIV 


A CRITICAL LOOK AT PROGRAMS IN BUREAU HIGH SCHOOLS 

VOCATIONAL EDUCATION 


The second session, due to the November 11 holiday, 
convened on November 10 only. Vocational education in Bureau schools 
was the principal topic under discussion. Because of time limitations, 
it was impossible to explore all aspects of the topic to the complete 
satisfaction of the participants. However, common agreement was 
reached on the basic principles that should serve as a guide to develop 
ment of policy regarding vocational programs. It was decided to 
reconvene the group the week of February 7-14 in Washington to finish 
the study and to draft a policy statement for consideration and 
approval by the Commissioner, to be issued to the Areas for use as 
a basic guide to assure orderly change in Bureau instructional 
programs. 


Vocational education in Bureau schools has been under study 
by school officials since the administrative conference in June 1957. 
Several changes have already been made, as the reasons for such 
changes became evident to local school officials and Indian communities 
The changes have taken place gradually with a minimum of public 
reaction. Outmoded programs have been eliminated, and certain 
operations consolidated; for example, reduction of farm programs, 
change of emphasis on arts and crafts instruction, consolidation of 
grades in certain schools. The only public reaction to date has 
related itself to the changed emphasis in arts and crafts, but even 
that reaction has abated with explanation. However, there are other 
changes to be made for which school officials have been preparing. 

The agreements of the November 10 meeting will form the 
basis for the discussions and recommendations to follow in February. 

A summary of those agreements follows: 

1. High school education is not enough in this day and age, but 
unless we motivate Indian parents and students to aspire to complete 
their high school program, plus training beyond high school, this 
generation of Indians will be under-educated. We cannot afford to 
lose this generation . Motivating a large group of people, who 
believe they are educated if they have an elementary education, is 

a tremendous task that must receive all our attention. 

2. If high school is not enough, high school programs should 
lay a strong base for further training beyond the high school in 
the trades, for the professions, in technical fields. Consequently, 
more and more of this generation of high school students should 


94 







receive the type of training that will prepare them for at least 
two years of training beyond the high school. As many as can be 
brought up to adequate levels should be encouraged to aspire to more 
than two years beyond high school. Indians have more educational 
opportunities for higher levels of training than ever before in 
their history: adult vocational training under Public 959; higher 
educational training through grants and loans; and special technical 
courses offered by Haskell, the Public Health Service, and other 
agencies. 

3. Strengthening reading comprehension and English should 
receive all-out effort in all schools. Dormitory programs should 
contribute to a greater degree to strengthening interest in reading 
and use of English, as well as provide the accultural experiences 
in modern living lacking in Indian environments. 

4. More emphasis on academic and less on industrial arts 
should be the program in 7th, 8th, and 9th grades. 

5. The emphasis on terminal vocational education (employment 
at the end of high school training) should be shifted to emphasis 
on industrial arts as found in an ordinary high school curriculum: 
woodworking, metalwork, home economics, etc. In other words, 
courses should be given that will prepare for further training, or 
will be useful to living regardless of later vocational choice. 
Terminal vocational courses should be eliminated and general courses 
substituted as rapidly as the background of students can be 
accelerated to the level where they have a reasonable chance for 
success in training beyond the high school level. (To avoid 
confusion, the terms usea - general vocational, or prevocational, 

or industrial arts - should be clearly defined to differentiate 
between vocational courses that lead to job placement immediately 
upon completion, and prevocational and avocational courses that 
develop interest and background for further training. Definitions 
will be developed at the February meeting to make this distinction.) 

6. Terminal vocational education courses that are retained 
should begin not earlier than the tenth or the eleventh grade, 
perferably the latter. This type of vocational offering should be 
retained only when these conditions prevail: 

a. If there are employment opportunities in the field 
of work. 

b. A sufficient number of students seek the type of training 
to make the offering practicable. A vocational 
certificate should be offered rather than a high school 


95 
















































































• * 


























































diploma. (Some objections to this suggestion will be 
discussed further at the February meeting.) 

7. Expensive terminal courses of limited demand should, 
where possible, be given in designated schools rather than 
duplication of such courses at several schools. 

8. Vocational guidance and testing should be included in each 
school program. 

9. Home economics courses to provide training in homemaking 
skills should be required as a part of every high school program 
to help Indian youth bridge the gap between the living standards 
of a modern community and an impoverished Indian community of low 
standards. Selected courses covering problems in home living should 
be required of every boy. Girls should have some training in shop 
skills of the do-it-yourself type. 

10. When policy is developed and approved, each school program 
should be re-evaluated and changes made in terms of the background 
of the student body. For example, the non-English-speakingv 
adolescent Navajo, educationally retarded^ cannot advance to the 
level indicated by these changes as rapidly as the youth who has 
had eight or ten years of schooling. Programs should aim to educate 
and train Indian students for the highest levels of useful employ¬ 
ment commensurate with their abilities. Some of the facts that 
have been collected and evaluated are: 

a. Indian high school graduates are on the average one to 
two years younger than twenty years ago. 

b. About 92 percent of school-age Indian children are now 
in school; attendance is improving. 

Not more than 10 percent of the national labor 
force is unskilled. This figure is rapidly decreasing. 
Seventy-five percent more professional and technical 
personnel, and 25 percent fewer laborers will be 
required by industry in the future. 

In 1957, the Bureau of Census reported the average 
education level as follows: 

White adults - 11 years of school 
Non-white adults - 7.7 years of school 
Indians (estimated) - 5 years of school 


96 











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English skill and reading retardation depressed 
educational status of Indian adults. 

c. Opportunities for further training that were non¬ 
existent even three years ago are now open to Indian 
youth. 

d. Approximately 85 percent of the Indian high school 
youth are retarded in reading and English, some as 
much as four, five, and six years. 

e. It is estimated that one to three percent of boarding 
school pupils enrolled in Federal schools have 
emotional or social problems so serious that special 
consideration should be given to meeting their needs. 

ACTION NOW IN PROGRESS 

1. Each Area is studying the reading problems of its pupils, 
and starting programs such as testing programs, in-service training 
programs, experimental programs, etc. to improve reading skills. 

2. Training programs are being started to strengthen English 
and acculturation experiences. The work begins this month at 
Chemawa. 


3. Further study is under way on consolidation of present 
programs to eliminate duplicated efforts. The Anadarko Area has 
proposed a plan for consideration. Phoenix Area is developing a 
plan. 


4. Each Area is re-studying its present vocational programs 
with respect to enrollment in each vocational course, practicality 
in terms of employment success of graduates, background of pupils, 
costs of courses. 

FUNDS FOR SCHOOLS 


The per capita allotment of school funds for each Area was 
submitted to the group for criticism and discussion. Before 
revealing the actual figures, such factors as adjustments because 
of higher costs for utilities, higher costs for high school programs 
as compared to elementary programs (group estimated a differential 
of 15-20 percent would be necessary), higher costs of reducing 
enrollments in certain schools (such as Pawnee-costs of approximately 
$1500 per pupil in its last year), etc., were evaluated. The group 


97 
































































expressed the opinion that the allotments were as equitable as they 
could be without a thorough program evaluation in relation to 
standards and development of budget requirements to carry out such 
programs. 

VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN BUREAU HIGH SCHOOLS 

1. Need for revision of programs - 

a. Children in high school grades becoming younger. 

b. Half day for academic work in the eleventh and twelfth 
grades is not enough for students interested in technical 
and professional training. 

c. Demand of potential employees is for high school plus 
vocational education. Person with less than high school 
education finds employment difficult. 

d. More children are going into post-high school education 
at present than ever before. 

e. There is need for clearer definition of vocational 
education. 

f. The age of beginning employment is being raised, 
regardless of the vocation. 

THE LONG-RANGE GOAL FOR BUREAU HIGH SCHOOLS 

1. High school graduation for all from course including: 

a. Mastery of oral and written English. 

b. Wide reading background and good reading habits. 

c. A social-civic program to equip each student as 
citizen and participant in community life. 

d. A mathematics and consumer education program which 
will prepare him to manage household and business 
problems involving money and will prepare for possible 
vocations. 

e. Music, art, craft, recreational, and other activities 
which will carry over into adult life. 


98 













































f. Prevocational and homemaking courses which will enable 
the student to determine first-hand his interest, 
aptitudes. 

g. A guidance program related closely to c and above 
which will prepare him for the next step (item 2 below). 

h. Opportunity to take foreign langpage as required for 
entrance in some college programs. 

2. A post-high school vocational program of approximately 
two years consisting entirely of vocational work and related training 

or 

A four-year college course which will lead to employment: 

a. Vocational work to be provided in Bureau schools for 
students not over 20 years of age at high school 
graduation. 

b. Vocational training under Public Law 959 for students 
who are married or who are 21 years of age or older. 

c. College work to be in state-supported schools with 
adequate Bureau assistance. (Does not preclude 
students attending church and private colleges). 

ADJUSTMENT OF LONG-RANGE GOAL TO CURRENT SITUATIONS 

1. Provide exploratory shop programs in Bureau high schools 
that will enable a pupil to enjoy a variety of experiences directly 
related to possible future vocations. 

2. Provide two-year programs leading directly to employment for: 

a. Any high school graduate who is interested and qualified 
for a particular course. 

b. Any other high school student who is 18 years of age. 

Some 16 or 17 year old pupils might be allowed to drop 
their academic work and take vocational training if 
department heads and advisors feel that they will drop 
out otherwise. Enrollment of Indian students from 
public schools should be discouraged until they have 
completed high school. 


99 









c. The term "vocational" will be applied to any program 
which occupies more than half of a pupil's time. It 
will not be planned in terms of high school credits. 

HIGH SCHOOL VOCATIONAL TRAINING 

1. Vocational training should be re-defined in the light of 
actual offerings and terms not used except when training for 
employment in a vocation is actually offered. 

2. Other courses, home economics, general shop, etc., should 
be called industrial arts or some other term not to be confused with 
vocation or possibly hobby clubs. 

3. Vocational training as such should not be offered in any 
school until 11th grade and only after guidance and selection of 
student. 


4. All schools should re-evaluate courses being offered. 
Eliminating courses not offering job placement opportunities or 
worthwhile experience. Courses not producing should be changed 
or eliminated. 

5. Special courses in a particular field could be offered at 
only one school possibly. 

6. Definite evaluation of enrollment criteria for vocational 
offerings in high school. 

G UIDING PRINCIPLES 

1. In addition to the academic program it may be said that 
Bureau regular high schools have the following: 

a. Industrial and homemaking arts and 

b. Vocational education. 

The two should not be confused. References to these two 
in school curricula, in workshops, correspondence, etc., should be 
clearly distinguished, and industrial arts is an integral part of 
a general education program. Its purpose is to offer exploratory 
experiences in one or several subjects as woodwork, metalwork, 
electricity, etc. Each subject may be taught in a separate shop 
or all subjects offered may be in only one shop, commonly referred 
to as a "general shop." 


100 










2. Vocational education should mean that a program seeks to 
prepare the students for job placements, the teaching of a skill 
that prepares the student for the making of a living. In general, 
it is a terminal program; however, it is understood that the 
individual may pursue the vocational training further after leaving 
Bureau schools. 

3. Industrial and homemaking arts are subjects which are a part 
of the regular school program. Examples - woodworking, leathercraft, 
home economics, prevocational, etc. These subjects are those which 
are generally taught in many public high schools. 

4. The period length for industrial and homemaking arts 
should generally be one or one and a half clock hours in length. 


101 













XV 


Memorandum 

To: Chief, Branch of Education 

From: Almira D. Franchville, Assistant Chief, Branch of Education 

R. Ethelyn Miller, Educational Specialist 

Subject: Report of the Twenty-Third Educational Conference under the 
auspices of the Educational Records Bureau and the American 
Council on Education, October 30 and 31, 1958, Commodore 
Hotel, New York, New York 


At the 1957 Conference of the Educational Records Bureau 
and the American Council on Education, shortly after the first man¬ 
made satellite was in orbit, the theme or plea was that we not be 
stampeded into making rash changes in educational programs for the 
sake of making changes. This year emphasis was on the necessity of 
improving the total educational program for all children - the 
average, the slow or late bloomer, and the mentally and physically 
handicapped, as well as the gifted. One significant statement was 
"No mind must go undeveloped as long as we have universal suffrage." 

Important points made during the conference were: 

1. Leaders of today are products of schools of 20 - 30 
years ago. We must prepare individuals to live and assume leader¬ 
ship 20 - 30 years hence. 

2. More and higher quality education must be provided 

for all segments of society if they are to be economically sufficient. 

3. More and better prepared teachers are necessary. Pre¬ 
service training of teachers must be improved. In-serv-ice training 
must be a part of all school programs. 

4. Education must provide for self-fulfillment, equal 
opportunity. Schools must find ways to teach all children. 

5. Labor which requires only muscular energy is 
disappearing. The individual who can offer no more than muscular 
energy will soon become useless in the labor market. 

6. If we are to survive, we must develop all our human 
resources. Individuals must be able to perceive and make wise 
decisions if we are not to be manipulated by an informed minority. 
Understanding, skill, and judgment are necessary in a democracy. 


102 














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7. American education programs must: 

a. Extend general education at least two years above 
high school. 

b. Extend adult education. No person can consider 
his education complete at any time. 

c. Improve quality of teacher-training. Colleges 
should look to elementary and high schools for 
help in what teacher training curricula should 
include. 


8. Every field of education must receive the same 
scrutiny and attention now being given science and math. 

9. There is urgent need for experimentation in education. 


10. Schools must scrutinize programs. The factors that 
make experimentation necessary are: 


a. 

We face a world of unlimited power. 


b. 

An explosive population growth. 


c. 

Man’s longevity is rising and productive span 
is increasing rapidly. 


d. 

Unskilled labor is disappearing. 


e. 

The workday or week is decreasing. Man's 
avocation may become his preoccupation. 

11. 

Fields for study: 


a. 

How to increase individual's responsibility for 
his own learning through 



(1) Motivation 



(2) Increased resources 



(3) Greater accessibility of resources. 80% of 
budget now being spent on buildings. 


108 





















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b„ More productive use of personnel through better 
scheduling and best use of personnel's time and 
talents. We must find ways to permit personnel 
to function at top levels for greater numbers of 
pupils. Concept of productivity must be developed. 

c. Increased use of technology. Technological devices 
will not replace books. There should be teamwork 
of educational and industrial people for develop¬ 
ment of technological devices and aids. 

d. The role of professional personnel in schools and 
patterns of teacher training must be studied. 

e. Must be agreement on the tasks for which schools 
and colleges are held accountable. Must find ways 
to provide facilities and funds to carry out the 
responsibilities. 

f. Schools and colleges must team together to do 
educational research. Only a few colleges now have 
facilities to carry out this function. 

All speakers voiced the opinion that our schools are better 
than they have ever been in the past; that education is now trying 
to meet the educational needs of all children regardless of their 
capabilities and that in so doing, it is inevitable that some 
students when finishing their school program will not measure up to 
the high levels that people would wish for them. They were of the 
opinion that today's children are better educated at their chrono¬ 
logical age than were children of earlier generations at the same 
age; that children are reading more and better for their age than 
did the children of earlier times. The speakers in no way wished 
to convey the idea that our school program is good enough to meet 
the demands of the times. On the contrary, they stressed over and 
over again the urgent need for more and higher quality education 
for all people. 


104 








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